From: International Civil Society
To: President Vicente Fox Quesada
Whereas, the government of Mexico signed the San Andres Accords
on February16, 1996;
Whereas, the government of Mexico, along with the Zapatista
National
Liberation Army, agreed to support the Cocopa proposal for
constitutional implementation of the San Andres Accords;
Whereas, the indigenous rights law known as the "Bartlett-Cevallos
Law"
approved by Congress and signed by President Fox in 2001 bears
little
resemblance to the Cocopa proposal and violates the basic
tenets of the San Andres Accords;
Whereas, almost every indigenous organization in Mexico opposes
the
"Bartlett-Cevallos Law;"
Whereas, the Cocopa proposal calls for the reform of article
4 of the
constitution: "The indigenous peoples have the right
to free determination and, as an expression of this, to autonomy
as a part of the Mexican State, such that they may: I) Choose
their internal forms of social, economic, political, and cultural
organization. II) Apply their traditional [judicial] systems
of regulation and resolution for internal conflicts, respecting
individual guarantees, human rights, and, in particular, the
dignity and integrity of women. The jurisdictional authorities
of the State will validate their proceedings, trials, and
decisions. III) Elect their authorities and exercise their
internal forms of governance, in accordance with their own
norms and within the scope of autonomy, guaranteeing the participation
of women in conditions of equity. IV) Fortify their political
participation and representation in accordance with their
cultural specificities. V) Collectively agree on the use and
enjoyment of the natural resources of their lands and territories,
understood as the total habitat used or occupied by the indigenous
communities, with the exception of those lands whose domain
corresponds directly to the Nation. VI) Preserve and enrich
their languages, knowledge, and all the elements which form
part of their identity and culture. VII) Acquire, operate,
and administrate their own means of communication;"
Whereas, the Cocopa initiative calls for reform of article
115 of the
constitution to guarantee that all indigenous communities
would enjoy the right "to define, in accordance with
the traditional political practices of each one [of the communities],
the procedures for election of their
authorities or representatives, and for the exercise of their
own forms of
internal governance, within bounds that will insure the unity
of the
national State;"
Whereas, the Cocopa initiative is consistent with Convention
169 of the
International Labor Organization, which was ratified by the
Mexican Senate in 1991, while the "Bartlett-Cevallos
Law" violates Convention 169 of the ILO;
Whereas, indigenous communities throughout Mexico suffer
military and police repression;
Whereas, Miguel Bautista, a Zapotec leader, is a political
prisoner,
unjustly imprisoned since July 2001 for his involvement in
the creation of
the Autonomous Municipality of Sochiapa, Veracruz in January,
2001:
Whereas, Carlos Manzo, Luis Alberto Marin, and Francisco
de la Rosa, Zapotec Indians and members of the Consejo Ciuadadano
de Unihidalguense (CCU) in Oaxaca, are political prisoners,
unjustly imprisoned for their defense of communal lands and
environmentally sensitive estuaries, and their accusations
of corruption filed against Armando Sanchez Ruiz, the former
mayor of Union Hidalgo;
Whereas, Isidro Baldenegro, Hermenegildo Rivas Carrillo,
Trinidad Baldenegro and Gabriel Palma Lopez, Tarahumara leaders
from the Sierra Madre in Chihuahua, are political prisoners,
unjustly imprisoned for their defense of indigenous forestland
and opposition to illegal drug dealing;
Whereas, Plan Puebla Panama contemplates the destruction
of environmentally sensitive lands and the displacement of
indigenous communities for the construction of dams, transportation
corridors, agricultural mega-projects and corporate-owned
"eco-tourism" facilities;
Whereas, in fiscal years 2002 and 2003, the federal government
channeled the majority of public funds designated for Plan
Puebla Panama to the construction of two roadways, connecting
Oaxaca City with Guatemala and connecting the U.S. border
to the Yucatan Peninsula;
Whereas, the construction of the Oaxaca City-Guatemala road
was undertaken without consulting affected local communities,
and has negatively impacted indigenous ancestral sites including
the archaeological zone of Dainzu;
Whereas, indigenous communities throughout Mexico are opposed
to Plan Puebla Panama;
Therefore, we the undersigned, as members of international
civil society
committed to peace with social and economic justice in every
corner of the world, call on the government of President Vicente
Fox Quesada, to:
1) Implement the San Andres Accords via the constitutional
reforms outlined in the Cocopa initiative;
2) Release all indigenous political prisoners, especially
those mentioned
above;
3) End the top-down implementation of Plan Puebla Panama,
and develop plans for economic and social development that
include the full participation of affected local communities
and in ways that respect indigenous traditions and culture.
*If your organization wishes to endorse the letter please
reply to yael@idex.org
