Forest Booty and threats of eviction by the ejido of La Selva vs. Zapatistas
Center for Political Analysis and Social and Economic Research (CAPISE)
San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas.
27-VII-2007
Report: December 24 Community
Dispossession and threats of forced eviction by Ejido Union of Forest against displaced by war, Zapatista Support Bases (BAZ).
Ejido Union of Forest , major distributors, partners and coffee for the national chain of coffee shops called "The Jungle Café" - launched a crackdown War Displaced Support Bases Zapatistas (BAZ) of the village on December 24, autonomous municipality San Pedro de Michoacán, the official municipality of Las Margaritas in the jungle region of Chiapas.
The method, tactics and strategy are performing in a systematic way for the Mexican state, the target and the internal enemy still being the Zapatista, autonomous authorities and the EZLN. Through the Mexican Federal Army, the Chief Executive of the Federal, Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces try to conform and rebuild underpinned the Anti-Zapatista land dispossession and forced eviction of Zapatista peoples.
As the Center reported in the report entitled "The Face of War" recently published in this month of July, we denounce this report again, the facts and the joints are repeated over and over again, where indigenous populations with military occupation, there are conflicts over land dispossession and threats of forced evictions of land and control the territory. Adverse organizations against the EZLN are used or created over and over again to generate these confrontations and waste, is now Ejido Union of Forest who is used for those purposes, but this same Ejido Union of the jungle, in full possession of his reason and his intention, it makes for such dark purposes.
Brief background.
Dec. 24 The town covers an area on land of 525 hectares . These lands were recovered by the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) in January 1994. The former governor of Chiapas (1982-1988) and landowner owner of the land was General Absalon Castellanos Domínguez1. On April 17, 1994, the authorities and the Zapatista commanders gave the 525 hectares of reclaimed land to 45 families indigenous Zapatista support bases.
After working the land for almost eleven months (April 1994-February 1995), 9 February 1995, the Mexican Federal Army launched an attack air, land and amphibious against the EZLN and its bases of support, 45 families in the village on December 24 (before town of New Momón ejidatarios) were able to escape the military attack deep into the jungle mountains tojolabal. After spending more than 8 days without food and the weather, the people of December 24 found refuge and shelter in a poblado2 where they remained for about a month. During that month, the Mexican Federal Army was in search of the peers BAZ doing patrols and interrogating people of different communities. The 45 families in the village on December 24 (before town of New Momón ejidatarios) found sanctuary in another village further away for 5 years when they could not be maintained in the other populated by lack of land, firewood and homes, families in the village December 24 again received sanctuary in another town for 7 years, ie, that these families have been displaced by war for more 12.
When these bases fled to the mountains in February 1995 by the Mexican Federal Army attack, all were legally ejidatarios New Momón, The 24 December 2006, authorities again Zapatistas return of 525 hectares of reclaimed land, 31 of the 45 families returned to their land and their homes (it's more accurate to say: what was left of their homes), the remaining families were not returned permanently settled in villages they had given shelter and sanctuary. The name of the town on December 24 is the date they returned in 2006. When villagers had December 24 and inhabited the lands occupied in April 1994, the town still had no name, at that time (1994 to February 1995) were finishing building their homes.
Today, 31 families from the village on December 24 have a total population of 146 people, 35 boys, 40 girls, 31 mothers, 31 parents and 9 adolescents (4 women, 5 men), each and all threatened again dispossession, forced eviction and back again to his status as war refugees.
During the twelve years that the Zapatista bases of support families were displaced by the war, General Absalon Castellanos was compensated for their land by Secretary of Agrarian Reform (SRA) through a decree of expropriation and a trust, in 1998 the government in turn granted the 525 hectares of the inhabitants of December 24 the members of Ejido Union of Forest from the towns of Nuevo Momon Cruz del Rosario and El Eden, who gave the name "Thank God" stripped land. So, now members of Ejido Union of Forest threatening to evict the 31 families Zapatista support bases.
Recent events
As in almost all cases, the stories of lands and territories of indigenous peoples and non-Zapatistas Zapatistas have a common denominator, dispossession: Testimony of an older man from the village on December 24 "In itself it is our place of origin. We were born in this area. We took Absalom. We went to the ejido Nuevo Momon and pulled us out. Our lands were delivered there. Opened our homes and they are distributed. But now we are tired. Patience is running out, "says the man. "My grandparents lived on this farm of Dr. Belisario Domínguez when Porfirio Díaz ruled. Messrs. Matthias Absalon Castellanos (Successive owners of the Momón) never gave back the land. We had to get up weapons to be fueran.3 "
On Tuesday July 17, 2007, with nine in the morning, 65 men of Ejido Union of Forest the villages New Momon Rosario Cruz and Eden, invaded the lands of the autonomous December 24, autonomous municipality San Pedro de Michoacán. Eight of the invaders were on guard at the entrances to town. The 57 people who entered the homes passed by the town of December 24 in an intimidating manner bordering the forest with machetes, carrying around bags, backpacks, buckets, and machetes.
They settled in a gating the way the town Dec. 24 to their fields of work, there is positioned, establishing a permanent camp is very near the military camp called Momón ejido. Have been knocking down trees and stealing more than 35 posts of the BAZ to build their houses 12 meters long.
few days ago, the people of New Momón, Cruz del Rosario and El Eden, members Ejido Union of Forest delivered a threatening letter, announcing a period of 72 hours for the BAZ of town Dec. 24 to vacate the premises "to avoid a clash between farmers," require "voluntary evacuation" and warned "they are willing to shed blood."
The letter is signed by an alleged Miguel Cruz Hernández Ejido Commission and the Council of operating the course Flavio Hernández López town, thank God.
The invaders Ejido Union of Forest New Momón and Cruz del Rosario is coordinated and articulated with the ejido Momón Military Camp near the village on December 24, in fact the place where members Ejido Union of Forest settled is less than 500 meters Military Camp. Shamelessly and brazenly members Ejido Union of Forest enter the military camp and leave papers with cells which are known to hide content. The same day that members of Ejido Union of Forest invaded the land, the State Police settled temporarily near the diversion to Matias Castellanos, a few meters from the new settlement of the invaders members Ejido Union of Forest.
The military camp is installed since February 1995, covers 24 hectares and is within the 525 hectares of land recovered by the EZLN, the camp has stationed two units, 91 º. Infantry Battalion (91 º. BI) and 20 º. 20 th Infantry Battalion. BI), 91 º. BI is one of Airmobile Special Forces Groups (GAFE's) and their headquarters are stationed at the military airport of Copalar, on the banks of the Committee, the 20 th. BI is stationed in two different military zones and according to information obtained by this Center, this military unit is not jurisdictional in Chiapas, but in Mexico City.
The flagrancy of the strategy is for others a nerve, the Zapatista town December 24 not only is flanked by the military camp Momón Ejido, but by the military camp stationed in the town of Eden, whose military unit is the 11 th. Infantry Company did not fall (11th. ISCED), that is, settlements that seek to dispossess and evict the Zapatista support bases of the village on December 24, are New Momón, Eden and Cruz del Rosario, have military detachments and Cruz Rosario's is also nearby.
involved not just the residents of New Momón, Cruz del Rosario and Eden, are also involved in Olonkho, Santa Fe and Ojo de Agua, all Ejido Union of Forest, and not only that, all of whom are landless, the vast majority are New Momón ejidatarios, including possession of land formerly of BAZ now have land in New Momón, but also Olonkho Santa Fe, Ojo de Agua and if this were not enough, they also want the 525 hectares of reclaimed land by blood and fire EZLN in 1994.
Some of the names of the members of Ejido Union of Forest involved in the dispossession and eviction threats against Zapatista bases of support are:
Olonkho
1. Ricardo Pérez Velasco
2. Velasco Cruz Laurencio
3. Tomás Hernández Velasco
Santa Fe
1. Belisario Velasco Cruz
Ojo de Agua
1. Lorenzo Juárez López
2. Armando Alfaro Rosario Cruz
1. Belisario Jimenez Lopez
2. Arturo Jimenez
3. Perez Cruz Cicero
basic Ejidatarios New Momón
1. Lorenzo Juárez López
2. Alberto Velasco Hernandez
3. Candido Hernández Hernández
4. Daniel Perez Cruz
5. Abraham Hernández Hernández
6. Gilberto Cruz López
7. Matías López Juárez
8. Candido Lopez Santis
9. Armando Hernández Hernández
10. Luis Cruz Hernández
11. Gonzalo Velasco Hernandez
12. Natalio Hernández Cruz
13. Hernández Hernández Caralampio
14. Jorge Velasco Santiz
15. Carlos Cruz Juárez
The 15 last names, New Momón ejidatarios are some of those who invaded the town on December 24 and remains there today.
Paradoxically, the coffee chain "Café La Selva ", whose partner and main distributor is Ejido Union of Forest - was awarded the New Ventures Award 2002, awarded by the Resources Institute and who takes into account initiatives from across America that have the following basic components:
a) "social development",
b) "sustainable development" and
c) business development.
defines recognition Café La Selva as one of the business proposals with "social responsibility" and "green" more solid throughout America "4.
"(...) for the start of the 1990's were able to obtain organic certification the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA) and Naturland" 5.
"Two-thirds of the coffee grown is exported as unroasted green coffee to countries like Holland, Denmark, Germany, England, United States and Canada. The remaining third is roasted and sold through the chain of coffee shops with the help of Link and Development organization. "
"Today there are 18 coffee outlets La Selva in Mexico, Europe and the United States. "
The Call
The Center for Political Analysis and Social and Economic Research AC (CAPISE), invites ...
I-civil society and Mexican organizations:
a) Conduct a national and international campaign of information on the Suppression of Ejido Union of Forest and national chain of coffee Café La Selva against Zapatista support bases.
b) Conduct a consumer boycott in the national chain Coffee cafes La Selva.
c) Send letters of protest to the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA) and for the granting of Naturland Certified Organic Coffee delivered to the Union Ejido of the jungle. Write to OCIA International: info@ocia.org
II-civil society and international organizations:
a) Conduct an international campaign of information on the Suppression of the Union Ejido of the Selva and his national chain of coffee Café La Selva against Bases Zapatista support.
b) Send letters of protest to the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA) and for the granting of Naturland Certified Organic Coffee delivered to the Union Ejido of the jungle. Write to OCIA International: info@ocia.org Please
who decide to send protest letters, please put "carbon copy (cc)" a: capise@laneta.apc.org
Sincerely
.
CAPISE
