Guerrero/National: 13th Meeting of MAPDER in Cacahuatepec

13th Meeting of MAPDER, Guerrero (@Mario Marlo)

The 13th Meeting of the Mexican Movement of People Affected by Dams and in Defense of the Rivers (MAPDER in its Spanish acronym) was held in the community of Salsipuesdes, in the Communal Property of Cacahuatepec, near Acapulco, in the state of Guerrero, from November 16th to 18th, within the framework of its 15 years of resistance. The objective of the meeting was “to share experiences and knowledge from the different resistance movements, affected and organizations that compose MAPDER, analyze MAPDER’s political proposal for the next political scenario, strengthen and provide solidarity to members of the Council of Ejidos and Communities Opposed to La Parota Dam (CECOP in its Spanish acronym).” Social organizations and defenders from Colombia and Brazil were also present at the event.

They recalled that hydroelectric projects have displaced people and caused environmental devastation in the name of progress. They also denounced “the deepening of the neoliberal model with a project to facilitate the control of territory by big capital, as are the special economic zones that the new government intends to continue promoting.”

They told the new government that they will not accept “the imposition of dams and hydroelectric projects as well as other extractive models that have led to confrontation, repression and criminalization of those who for many years have defended our lands, the rights of peoples and territories.” They said that “the so-called Agrarian Development Law which aims to abrogate the Agrarian Law, goes in that same direction, it is the law left pending by the Peña government and gives continuity to the Salinist reform of Article 27, which opened the Mexican countryside to national, foreign private capital, and if they intend this to be change, they will soon come up against the people who elected them.”

In particular, they called for an end to harassment against CECOP members, immediate release of 19 of its members and all political prisoners in the country, as well as the departure of the state police from the territory of Cacahuatepec. In addition to justice for the murder of the defenders of territory in the northern mountains of Puebla and the presentation alive of the defender Sergio Rivera; as well as the definitive cancellation of the projects of the dams, La Parota in Guerrero, Las Cruces in Nayarit, the Purgatory in Jalisco, Paso de la Reyna Oaxaca, the Naranjal in Veracruz, Milpillas in Zacatecas; and the immediate dismantling of the El Zapotillo dam in Jalisco and an audit of the restoration project of the Rio Verde basin.

For more information in Spanish:

No aceptarán la imposición de presas en el gobierno de AMLO, dicen ambientalistas (El Sur, 19 de noviembre de 2018)

Llaman activistas a mantener la lucha contra construcción de presas (La Jornada de Guerrero, 18 de noviembre de 2018)

Activistas de 3 países piden a pueblos seguir su lucha contra proyectos hidroeléctricos (La Jornada, 18 de noviembre de 2018)

Movimiento Mexicano de Afectados por las Presas prepara encuentro en Salsipuedes, Guerrero (Somos el medio, 15 de noviembre de 2018)

CONVOCATORIA AL 13° ENCUENTRO NACIONAL DEL MAPDER (MAPDER, octubre de 2018)

For more information from SIPAZ:

National: XI National Meeting of the Mexican Movement of Those Affected by Dams and in Defense of Rivers (MAPDER) in Olintla, Puebla (September 15th, 2014)

Guerrero: national and international organizations visit prisoners of the CECOP and the CRAC-PC (October 10th, 2018)

Guerrero: 50 arrest warrants against members of CECOP (September 24th, 2018)

Guerrero : Detienen a otro integrante del Consejo de Ejidos y Comunidades Opositoras a La Parota (CECOP) en medio de presiones de fuerzas civiles armadas (September 5th, 2018)

Guerrero: Nine of 25 Detainees from Confrontation in La Concepción in January Released
(September 17th, 2018)