Students, host families, and community members of Atenco in front of a mural.This week our group, along with some of our host families, went to Atenco in the state of Mexico. Before going, we learned about this community in our political science class “Gender and Social Change in Latin America” through our unit on social movements. Atenco is about thirty minutes outside of Mexico City and is mostly made up of farmers and traders. In 2001 the community protested against the government proposition to construct an airport on their farmland and organized a movement called the Frente de los Pueblos en Defensa de la Tierra (People’s Front in Defense of the Land, FPDT). Specifically they were opposing the expropriation of 5,000 hectares of agricultural land and the construction of the airport.
On August 1, 2002, after nine months of struggle, the government canceled the expropriation of the land in Atenco as well as the construction of the airport. However, this FPDT success did not occur without consequence. During the opposition movement there were a number of reports of illegal searches, arrests, harassment, threats, physical attacks, and arbitrary detention. Furthermore, in April 2006, there was a clash between flower growers and local authorities in a nearby community of Texcoco. Municipal authorities forced the relocation of 1200 flower stalls. Forty eight flower growers protested at the office of the Attorney General and on May 3, the public security forces removed the protesters with excessive force. This excessive force included human rights violations such as the killing of a minor, the inhumane treatment of detainees, and violation of women’s rights. Many people would argue that the violence in Texcoco was revenge for the victory that took place in the community of Atenco in 2002.[1]
Still today, many members of the FPDT are being detained for outrageous amounts of time under unlawful circumstances. This is also an example of how the government and judicial authorities have used their power and privilege to oppress those who defy hegemony.
After visiting with the community of Atenco, I was amazed at the incredible power, pride, and strength that the members of the FPDT and the community have as a whole. They are still fighting hard to gain freedom for their compañeros in prison while many members must take extreme caution in public because of their involvement in the movement. I also felt very fortunate to see the agricultural lands that were intended to be sold for the construction of the airport. It was beautifully serene and peaceful, and clearly a very important part of the community.
This visit to Atenco and the land surrounding it was a continuation of my thoughts on the entire idea of land, particularly in the sense of it being owned. The land and farms in Atenco have a great history throughout the community. We watched a documentary prior to our visit in which one man said that the land was not theirs, rather it was for their children. It belongs to those who work it. And truly we see this type of attitude and tradition within many communities in Mexico. I recall learning about very similar ideas in Amatlan, an indigenous community in the state of Morelos. What role do humans have in deciding how something as powerful as nature can be divided, separated, conquered, or purchased? These ideas also came to my mind when we were on the border in El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. The separation of land was decided upon through the suffering of many people. And I question if land can really be owned by any person? What price does one have to pay to “own” the land? How much money, or rather, how much blood does it cost?
[1] Centro de Derechos Humanos. “Atenco: Rule of law, made to measure.” 10 May 2006.
Students walk through the agricultural land that was proposed to be used for airport construction.
3 comments:
Going to Atenco showed us the struggle that many in Mexico go through for the right to their own land. The slogan of “¡Atenco no se vende!” is one that we heard numerous time while learning about Atenco. Further, it is one that we have heard many more times in the struggle against privatization. Along with “¡Atenco no se vende!” we also hear “¡Petróleo no se vende!" “¡Los Maestros no se vende!", and in El Salvador "¡La Iglesia no se vende!". The struggle for people in Latin America to keep what is theirs and to collectively own what is theirs, is a difficult one. With globalization of trade and treaties such as NAFTA and CAFTA this struggle becomes even more so. Going to Atenco showed us one community that is continuing to struggle, but as Christy points out, it is a struggle that involves paying a heavy price. A struggle that involves people going to jail just so they can try and keep what is theirs.
The questions you raise here, Christy, have been the same questions that I've been asking myself. How does one ever truly own land? Who has the right, if anyone? The struggle in Atenco along with some other struggles we've studied like the 13 Pueblos de Morelos have made me think about how land has means something different for different cultures. From the time we spent in Amatlán a few months back, it seems that the indigenous people of Mexico value land as a living being in an of itself with intrinsic worth not unlike that of people. Land should be cherished, should be cared for, should be respected. We are bound to it. These ideas are in sharp contrast with those of the government and, more generally, most developed nations. Conflicts seem to arise from this difference. With a divide of values so polarized and so unchanging, what solution could ever be found?
CIEE-Thailand students have been working on researching human rights violations in the Northeast of Thailand these past several weeks. Two of my classmates and I went to villages affected by the Pak Mun Dam and listened to the villagers tell their stories about how with the dam came changes to traditional local culture. When my classmates and I would ask, “Who do you believe owns the river?” the villagers would always respond, “Before the dam, no one owned the river. It belonged to all of us, but now, the government owns the river.” You raise an interesting point when you question, “How does one ever truly own land?” From what I have read it seems like the people you are interacting with love the land just as much as those people I spoke with in Pak Mun Dam-affected villages.
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