Huajimic in Rebellion: Roadblocks, Blades and Death Threats

Carlos González García arrived yesterday morning—traveling along the dirt track ascending from the El Cajón dam—at the entrance to the village of Huajimic. Two hundred furious cattle ranchers were waiting for him and the members of his caravan. "They slashed two tires on the pickup truck owned by Benjamín Sandoval—a lawyer from Tepic who is supporting us—using knives; Cristian Chávez, our geographer, was riding in it. They slashed two of his tires with knives, ripped off a side mirror, and attempted to intimidate him: they had a rope which they thrust through the window, signaling for me to put my head inside (implying they would hang me). They told Cristian they were going to cut off his head; then they began rocking the truck, trying to tip it toward the edge of the road to push it down a small ravine... They held us captive for nearly two hours; some of these civilians were armed, while others wore hoods and carried radios. When we finally managed to get away—on our way back out—they told us that if we ever returned, they would kill us..." the lawyer told *MILENIO JALISCO*.

This serves as the best summary of the third attempted enforcement of judicial rulings—and the second consecutive failure—by the staff of the 56th Unitary Agrarian Tribunal of Tepic. This tribunal is responsible for placing into the hands of the *comuneros* (communal landholders) of San Sebastián Teponahuaxtlán (Wuaut+a) lands currently held by the ranchers of Huajimic—lands which, in some cases, have been in the ranchers' possession for up to five generations—yet over which the Huichol people, whom González García represents, hold immemorial and historical rights.

The natives of the sierra have demonstrated to the agrarian magistrates that these lands were formally recognized as theirs by the Spanish Crown as early as the beginning of the 18th century. Consequently, their legal claim predates that of their neighbors—whose continued presence in the area has been supported by the state government of Nayarit, an entity the Huichol people view as the primary obstacle to the enforcement of the law in the region. The delegation—comprising the court clerk and the surveyor from TUA 56 in Tepic; an inspector from the National Human Rights Commission; an observer from the Jalisco State Human Rights Commission; and the three members of the Wixárika defense team—was allegedly supported by four pickup trucks carrying 21 Nayarit state police officers; however, according to the defense attorney's testimony, "they could do very little." Upon being informed of the events, the TUA magistrate, Aldo Saúl Muñoz López—who did not travel to the mountain region on this occasion—characterized the police presence as "tepid," noting that it failed to contain the acts of aggression.

The protesters—led by Ignacio Quintanilla, Otoniel Sandoval, Rafael Sandoval, Fortino Montoya, Audelina Villagrana, Magdalena Mira, Reveriano Montoya, and Ciro Quintanilla—engaged in a systematic harassment of the caravan members for approximately two hours, according to information provided by court personnel and the Wixárika defense attorney. "In other words, the police commander approached them, and they told him they would not allow passage, that they would not surrender the lands without compensation, and that the court order could not be executed. The officer then said, 'It can't be done; let's turn back'—and yet... they blocked our retreat."

The protesters forced the drafting of an official record documenting the events and confirming that the residents of Huajimic would not permit any further enforcement of court judgments. They compelled the representatives to sign the document. "It simply states what transpired: that the court clerk arrived to execute the order, that the residents opposed it, and that they demanded compensation based on the actual market value of the properties..."

The remainder of the day of intimidation unfolded amidst angry speeches delivered by the protest leaders, who asserted that the lands rightfully belonged to them, arguing that it was not the Huichol people who had made the land flourish. —and that the indigenous people are "a bunch of lazybones" who "have children just so the government will give them money."

Two guests failed to arrive: hundreds of Wixaritari people had begun their descent from their villages in Jalisco for the formal handover of two land parcels—one of 15 hectares and the other, just over half a hectare. There was also talk of alleged support from the public security forces of the neighboring state, but this was held in check; it would have further inflamed the conflict, as some local leaders view the indigenous people as proxies for an alleged territorial expansionist agenda on the part of their larger neighbor.

A new handover of land parcels is scheduled for April 25. The outlook is not optimistic.

The community of Wuaut+a is set to hold an extraordinary assembly to determine how to respond to yesterday's acts of aggression.

The Wixaritari’s legal counsel will file a criminal complaint for property damage and making threats, holding the leaders of the blockade responsible. The National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) is expected to issue a statement regarding the grave risks to life and human rights currently prevailing in Huajinic.

Neither SEDATU nor the government of Nayarit has yet issued a statement regarding these events.