Support non-profit journalism and perspectives from around the world. See all those languages? The Lingua project at Global Voices works to bring down barriers to understanding through translation. Meet 10 activists who use digital media to strengthen and promote Mayan languages in Mexico Learn about the inspiring story of one of the grantees selected for the 2024 Mayan Language Digital Activism Fellowship organized by Rising Voices the author shares about his experience in activism and the project through which he seeks to promote his native language within his community and in digital spaces My name is Juan Vázquez Méndez, better known as Xunté. I am originally from the municipality of San Juan Cancuc and I speak the Tzeltal language San Juan Cancuc belongs to the Tzeltal Mayan culture What I like most about my community is that we still preserve our mother tongue as well as the use and production of textiles in an artisanal way since in the municipality of San Juan Cancuc approximately 90 percent of inhabitants still speak this language I have contributed as a translator and interpreter in cases of violence against women in my community This work has led me to consider myself a cultural promoter and defender of human rights within my community My career as a community facilitator motivated me to apply for the Mayan Language Digital Activism Program Participating in this program will allow me to strengthen the work I do for my community In San Juan Cancuc we have not had the opportunity to communicate to the outside world the social or environmental problems we face there are no alternative media that report on what is happening in our territory and promote our rights I will develop a project that seeks to report on the events that occur in our community I have invited teens from the Iwiltic community to participate in face-to-face training on the promotion and revitalization of the Tzeltal language through digital journalism in San Juan Cancuc These training sessions seek to strengthen the youth's skills to document and tell the stories of their communities Communicating our knowledge entails a great responsibility in the use of digital media and information which is why I focused on community digital journalism because it allows us to think about the responsible use of technology and digital media The project involves the cooperation of different people in the community which is why I consider that it will be a good start to promote the work of youth in the long run The participation of youth is fundamental in the construction of town agreements that promote respect for all people including children and adolescents in the community I would like to see young people as subjects of human rights who act with social responsibility both in their communities and in their families I invite the young people of the Indigenous communities to dare to dream and take small actions for themselves and for their community to create more equitable and inclusive spaces with our people and with nature This post is from Rising Voices, a Global Voices project that helps spread citizen media to places that don't normally have access to it. All Posts ERROR: SECURITY TIMEOUT - Please copy your message to a backup location Global Voices stands out as one of the earliest and strongest examples of how media committed to building community and defending human rights can positively influence how people experience events happening beyond their own communities and national borders Please consider making a donation to help us continue this work Donate now Authors, please log in » Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Stay up to date about Global Voices and our mission. See our Privacy Policy for details. Newsletter powered by Mailchimp (Privacy Policy and Terms) Global Voices is supported by the efforts of our volunteer contributors, foundations, donors and mission-related services. For more information please read our Fundraising Ethics Policy Special thanks to our many sponsors and funders Cover image: Family members of the five prisoners from San Juan Cancuc protest in front of the Palace of Justice of San Cristóbal de Las Casas as well as the legal representatives of the five Tzeltal political prisoners from the municipality of San Juan Cancuc announced that they have filed an appeal to annul the conviction that has maintained the five from Cancuc in prison for more than two years and four months Accused of the killing of a municipal policeman in 2022, the five Tzeltales as well as organizations that are accompanying them demand their immediate freedom because there is no evidence to maintain them in prison The Indigenous Tzeltales are Agustín Pérez Domínguez Martín Pérez Domínguez and Manuel Sántiz Cruz Although they were first sentenced to 25 years in prison the courts in Chiapas reduced the sentence to 18 years the demand from their legal team is their immediate freedom In a press conference on Thursday August 22 the lawyer Adrián Reyes explained that the appeal was presented at the federal level at the beginning of August—a legal resource contesting the convictions and demanding that the case be thrown out—to achieve the immediate freedom of the five Tzeltal political prisoners Reyes explained that the appeal is currently notifying the third parties among them the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Chiapas so that they can give their opinion on the legal resource presented on August 6 Press conference announcing the filing of the appeal seeking immediate freedom for the five Tzeltal human rights defenders “It will be the federal level—in reference to the Collegiate Court of the Superior Tribunal of Justice—who must resolve and analyze each one of the arguments presented in the appeal It will also have to review that the investigations and each one of the elements of the convictions which in our opinion are not sufficient to demonstrate the responsibility of those detained,” explained the lawyer in a press conference held in San Cristóbal de las Casas Reyes emphasized that the punishment isn’t only imprisonment for the five Tzeltales but also the hardships of their families in their struggle for justice as well as the risk to the physical well-being of the prisoners who in recent months have denounced a series of abuses inside CERSS No the use of the federal appeal is justified because of the actions of judicial power in Chiapas He points out that since the beginning of the case the public prosecutor’s office assumed the guilt of the accused for which an adequate investigation wasn’t carried out to truly demonstrate their participation in the crime nor did it provide necessary elements to convict them there is great mistrust in the state institutions because they are incorrectly convicting and “they have fabricated a series of crimes that far from leading to justice In the press conference were human rights defenders from the Parish of San Juan Cancuc who read a communique signed by the political prisoners where they highlighted that the crime for which they are accused has been fabricated by the Chiapas Indigenous Justice Public Prosecutor’s Office “They fabricated crimes against them for defending the land,” said the human rights defenders They also explained that among the different projects that threaten the Tzeltal communities in the Highlands of Chiapas is the highway project which has been promoted for a decade by the state government and currently seeks to connect the coast of Chiapas with the Maya Train in Palenque We are defenders of land and territory,” sustained the Tzeltal human rights defenders who has accompanied the actions for freedom of the five political prisoners assured that “the prisons are full of innocent people due to this corrupt system that we have in Mexico and that there is no justice.” He also indicated that they will keep up the struggle together with the families and organizations to free the Indigenous Tzeltales Contact us: avispamidia@riseup.net The materials created by Avispa Midia may be reproduced only for non-profit purposes You must acknowledge the authorship and inform about its publication Dozens of communities in a Chiapas municipality have officially said “thanks but no thanks” to Covid-19 vaccinations following a stance already taken by residents of 24 other municipalities “Only two people voluntarily wanted to get the vaccine,” said San Juan Cancuc Mayor José López López in a letter he wrote on Monday to Ministry of Health officials in San Cristóbal de las Casas explaining that 45 communities in his municipality had voted to disallow any vaccination campaigns in their villages López explained that the local government held a meeting with community leaders representing the 45 villages to inform them about the upcoming campaign to vaccinate as well as the benefits and possible side effects of the vaccine The leaders agreed to go back to their villages and share the information with residents residents “stood firm in their decision not to allow vaccination.” The decision also affected health clinics in the 45 communities and the medical personnel who work there: administrators in local clinics drew up resolutions stating that Covid-19 vaccination campaigns would not be allowed there Despite the fact that Chiapas has already received 15,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine more than 40 health officials and medical personnel in San Juan Cancuc remain unvaccinated Rejection of the vaccine has taken place in nearly 100 communities throughout the state according to a report by the Chiapas rural development office Ninety-nine villages in 25 municipalities have refused to allow the installation of vaccination sites These include communities in San Cristóbal residents in communities within the municipalities of Chamula San Cristóbal de las Casas and Tenejapa have voted against permitting vaccination campaigns local teachers have been expressing doubts about the vaccine residents in seven Chiapas communities refused to allow the installation of Covid-19 checkpoints residents resisted sanitization efforts by local government sociopolitical conflicts have been detected There is a lack of confidence in the vaccine [and] the community does not allow measures related to Covid-19 [prevention].” Sources: Gabriela Coutiño (sp), Reforma (sp) ADVERTISE WITH MND COMMUNITY GUIDELINES Subscription FAQ's Privacy Policy Mexico News Daily - Property of Tavana LLC Coke has become a key part of indigenous ceremonies as well as a staple source of hydration The photographer Diana Bagnoli visited the region to see the effect of this trend on public health More Coke is consumed per capita in Mexico than in any other country and some studies suggest the indigenous communities of the highlands may be the soft drink’s most loyal customers on the planet a small community in Chiapas known for its consumption of Coca-Cola A Coca-Cola van in the narrow streets of San Cristóbal The signs are everywhere Red trucks emblazoned with the curly white logo are familiar sights in towns and far-flung villages and on the winding mist-shrouded mountain roads that connect them Coca-Cola fridges occupy the most visible spots in most corner shops while billboard adverts are so widespread they often end up as building materials for the very poor A celebration in the village of Zinacantán a marriage or a patron saint is considered complete without Coke for the guests Coca-Cola has become an integral part of indigenous religious observance and healing ceremonies which are often intertwined with the Catholic pantheon but operate autonomously from the church believed to feed the good spirits and help the sick is today as central a feature of many public and private rituals as incense A woman in front of an altar at her home in El Pinar Coca-Cola has become so intertwined with the local culture that is part of spiritual ceremonies such as this one in Tenejapa Several years ago she started using Coke in her ceremonies and it also has certain healing properties” said Pascuala But the intertwining of Coca-Cola with local tradition in Los Altos has contributed to the rise of a health emergency that activists accuse authorities of not taking seriously enough Coca-Cola is sweet and it also has certain healing propertiesPascuala a healerType-2 diabetes is now firmly established as the biggest killer in the region according to a study of death certificates between 2008 and 2012 in three municipalities a medical anthropologist who carried out the study says the government has sought to keep diabetes mortality out of official statistics to avoid looking bad Other health problems related to excessive sugar consumption “The consumption of soft drinks here is really terrible and even with diabetics themselves it can seem impossible for them to stop,” Paige said Sanando Heridas is a free and itinerant healthcare system for indigenous people Rosa is pregnant and has comes to check on the baby and her glucose level The story of how Coca-Cola became so deeply embedded in this verdant land of age-old traditions and minimal disposable income goes back to the 1960s when local indigenous leaders This included taking control of the concessions for the distribution of Coca-Cola and Paige says this happened at the same time as evangelical churches were making inroads in the area and pressuring indigenous communities to stop drinking alcohol This combination led indigenous religious leaders to start substituting Coca-Cola for the local firewater which they had long used to feed the spirits in their rituals indigenous people have their own altar where they pray to the Virgin Mary as well as the spirits of nature Healers at the church use soft drinks instead of the traditional pox a very alcoholic drink prohibited by the Catholic church The seal of celestial approval not only helped create a belief that Coca-Cola had the power to heal but also fuelled its march to becoming a symbol of social status and good hospitality Coke also began to replace a traditional drink made of fermented corn dough which was once the main way peasants topped up their energy during long days in the fields Today they are much more likely to reach for a sugar-packed soft drink Coca-Cola’s colonisation of Los Altos was also accelerated by the construction of a bottling plant just outside San Cristóbal de las Casas The plant today supplies much of the south of Mexico and it has always paid particular attention to the local market Lunchtime during a celebration in Zinacantán Marketing strategies have included huge billboards with smiling indigenous models religious references and slogans written in indigenous languages as well as the proliferation of points of sale no matter how small the volumes shifted a medical doctor and activist based in San Cristóbal likens the strategy to drug gangs penetrating deep into communities via large networks of small dealers driven primarily by the need to feed their own habits Arana says the addiction starts ever earlier A recent study in an indigenous community found that 15% of children aged one or two regularly drank soft drinks Coca-Cola’s penetration of the market in Los Altos has also been aided by a strategy of charging less in remote rural areas where a Coke in a returnable glass bottle is often scarcely more expensive than bottled water clean drinking water is not generally available even to those who can count on running water in their homes which means many turn to soft drinks for basic hydration The irony of this is clear in an area known for its constant downpours and abundant springs such as the one that attracted the Coca-Cola bottling company Local activists say the company has so overexploited the spring that the city of San Cristóbal is now facing water shortages A small river whose water level has decreased significantly People collect rainwater in a cistern and store it in plastic bags A well that extracts fresh water from a volcano basin The bottling plant has permits to extract more than 300,000 gallons of water a day as part of a decades-old deal with the government that critics say is overly favourable to the plant’s owners The activists allege this has been possible in part because Coca-Cola has friends in high political places Between 2000 and 2006 the country’s president was Vicente Fox It all adds up to a perfect storm of sugar-related health issues in Los Altos who is in charge of nutrition at the main hospital in San Juan Chamula says only about one in 10 of the indigenous patients with diabetes accept there is any need to cut out sugar-packed drinks “They just don’t believe that it is bad for them,” she said In Mexico’s 15 poorest municipalities – located in three southern states with large indigenous populations — more than 98% of the population lives in poverty A report published by national social development agency Coneval on Wednesday shows that eight of those municipalities are in Oaxaca The poorest municipality in 2020 was San Simón Zahuatlán, Oaxaca, where 99.6% of residents live in poverty. In 2019, human development in the municipality, located in the state’s Mixteca region, was comparable to that in Yemen, the United Nations said in a report The second poorest municipality was Cochoapa el Grande, Guerrero, where the practice of selling young girls into marriage to alleviate poverty is common 99.4% of residents in the Montaña region municipality live in poverty The other 13 municipalities with poverty rates above 98% were San Juan Cancuc – were also among the 15 poorest municipalities in the country in 2010 and 2015 A person is considered to be living in poverty if their income is below Coneval’s poverty threshold – currently 3,898 pesos (US $187) per month in urban areas and 2,762 pesos (US $133) in rural areas – and they present at least one social deficiency out of six among which are poor access to adequate nutrition A person is considered to be living in extreme poverty if their income is below 1,850 pesos per month in urban areas and 1,457 pesos in rural areas and they present at least three social deficiencies The 15 municipalities with the highest extreme poverty rates are also located in Oaxaca Santiago Amoltepec ranked first in that category with 84.4% of residents living in extreme poverty Coneval also identified the municipalities with the highest number of residents living in poverty and extreme poverty last year headed the former list with almost 817,000 impoverished people Five other municipalities had more than half a million poor people in 2020, when poverty levels rose due to the pandemic had the highest number of people living in extreme poverty – more than 126,000 – while León also had more than 100,000 extremely poor residents Coneval said that half of all Mexicans not considered poor live in just 46 urban municipalities located mainly in the country’s central and northern states an affluent municipality in the metropolitan area of Monterrey had the lowest poverty rate in the country in 2020 with just 5.5% of residents considered poor Human development there in 2019 was comparable to that in France Eleven of the 15 municipalities with the lowest poverty rates last year – all 11% or lower – are in Nuevo León The four other municipalities among the 15 with the lowest poverty rates last year are Benito Juárez A report published earlier this month said that Mexico is one of the most unequal countries in the world The top 10% of income earners in Mexico earn over 30 times more than the bottom 50%