Violence, poverty and threats to their spiritual sites, problems faced by the Wixaritari

▲ Despite demands for government intervention, community leaders have been kidnapped and even murdered. Photo courtesy of the Wixárica Route

Juan Carlos G. Partida

Correspondent

La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, July 13, 2025, p. 4

Guadalajara, Jalisco, The Wixaritari communities in Jalisco and neighboring states such as Nayarit, Durango, and Zacatecas face a complex web of problems marked by widespread insecurity, poverty, long-standing territorial conflicts that remain unresolved, threats to their sacred sites, and the struggle for recognition of their autonomy.

For at least two decades, Wixárika territory has become a strategic drug trafficking corridor, resulting in constant anxiety due to the presence of armed groups from the Sinaloa and Jalisco Nueva Generación cartels, who are vying for control of the area, creating illegal checkpoints, extortion, disappearances, murders, and threats against the indigenous population.

Communities have demanded intervention from federal authorities, including the installation of National Guard barracks, as well as increased surveillance by state police, given the widespread fear of traveling through the region. However, they have been consistently ignored, with reports that municipal and state authorities are aware of the presence of these criminal groups without taking effective action.

The 2017 murders of brothers Miguel and Agustín Vázquez Torres in Kuruxi Manuwe (Tuxpan de Bolaños), leaders committed to territorial defense, are a tragic example of this impunity. Despite the fact that those responsible have been identified, eight years later, no arrests have been made.

In addition, Wixaritari leaders such as Maurilio Ramírez Aguilar and Santos de la Cruz Carrillo have been deprived of their liberty. They were released after being beaten and threatened to keep silent.

Other cases include the disappearance of four Wixaritari in Tatei Kie (San Andrés Cohamiata), in September 2024, which led to the closure of the road and a sit-in demanding their appearance alive, which fortunately occurred.

Another line about the problems suffered in Wixárika territory is that of poverty.

In Mezquitic, Jalisco, the municipality with the largest concentration of Wixaritari communities in the country and the majority of the indigenous population, the situation of multidimensional poverty is alarming, with rates similar to those in the African countries of Ethiopia or Gambia. For decades, it has been the poorest municipality in Jalisco.

Another problem is the invasion of vast areas of their ancestral territory, despite having viceregal titles and court rulings in their favor.

Wuaut+a-Kuruxi Manuwe (San Sebastián Teponahuaxtlán and Tuxpan de Bolaños) have claimed around 10,448 hectares in Huajimic, Nayarit, occupied by mestizo ranchers who until recently and after compensation, agreed to return them, after opposing the execution of sentences with blockades and death threats from the possessors.

The 2022 March for Wixárika Dignity toward Mexico City and the presidential commitment promoted the restitution. Recently, President Claudia Sheinbaum issued a decree to restore an additional 2,471 hectares for 158 million pesos, bringing the total restored to 5,946 hectares since 2016, representing 56.7 percent of the total claimed. 4,550 hectares remain to be returned.

Minas and Wirikuta

The sacred site of Wirikuta in San Luis Potosí, considered the origin of the universe in Wixárika cosmogony, remains under constant threat. Approximately 70 percent of the 140,000 hectares of the protected natural area are under concession to mining companies such as First Majestic Silver Corporation, Revolution Resources, and Minera Frisco (owned by Carlos Slim), despite injunctions obtained since 2012 that have temporarily halted activity.

They also face the illegal exploitation and sale of hikuri (peyote), their sacred plant. Furthermore, Wirikuta suffers from pig and poultry farms that dump waste outdoors, polluting the environment.

In budgetary matters, only a long legal battle has allowed Wuaut+a-Kuruxi Manuwe to obtain favorable rulings from federal and state electoral courts (SG-JDC-35/2019 and JDC-005-2019) that allow them direct administration of municipal resources in the municipalities of Bolaños and Mezquitic, becoming the first community in Jalisco to obtain this right.

They estimate they are owed around 80 million pesos annually, but despite the rulings, municipalities like Mezquitic have refused to comply, citing legal loopholes and a lack of transparency.

This process eventually seeks the creation of a self-governing indigenous municipality, where elections are held according to customs and traditions, without political parties, as indicated will occur in 2027.

Furthermore, bicultural schools in Wixaritari communities face discrimination, disrespect for teacher appointments, late payments, and a lack of basic infrastructure such as electricity, water, and internet.

This has led to prolonged work stoppages and protests, demanding the attention of federal, state, and municipal authorities.

In the health sector, the lack of ambulances and adequate medical care in isolated regions has resulted in the deaths of children from preventable conditions, such as respiratory failure or scorpion stings. Communities have also unsuccessfully demanded the purchase and repair of emergency vehicles suitable for the region's terrain and the support of senior health officials to ensure the necessary medical personnel are available.

Armando G. Tejeda

Correspondent

La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, July 13, 2025, p. 4

Madrid. More than 2,000 people gathered in Spain to condemn the incessant bombings and violence unleashed against the Palestinian people by the Israeli army and demand an end to the war. In up to 200 rallies in most of the country's cities, more than 300 people responded to the call of the Stop the War platform, which has so far drafted eight manifestos signed by more than 30,000 people from 125 countries, including prominent cultural figures such as Catalan singer-songwriter and poet Joan Manuel Serrat, Nicaraguan writer Sergio Ramírez, and Spanish novelist Antonio Muñoz Molina.

The event in Madrid was held in the central Plaza de Callao, where representatives of the platform gathered alongside protesters to spread their message of stopping the war and once again call on citizens to unite to end the genocide in Palestine . During the event, attendees were seen carrying Palestinian flags and chants of " It's not a war, it's a genocide" were constantly heard.

At the 200 rallies held in city squares across the country, the same message was voiced, demanding an end to the war in the Gaza Strip, where Palestinians have been living through this hell for 20 months, one that is particularly cruel for children . At the same time, activists called for popular mobilization regardless of ideology or creed .