To Local, National, and International Organizations,
To Human Rights Defenders,
To the Free Media,
And to the General Public Acting in Good Faith.
In light of the threats and harassment we continue to face, we are providing an update on the situation in our territory regarding the Palenque–San Cristóbal Highway project.
Although the government delegate and the engineers have already been informed of our rejection of this project, we ask that you please stay informed, because at this very moment, our comrades who are defending their plots of land—which are the source of their daily livelihood—continue to be harassed and threatened with imprisonment.
We hold the three levels of government responsible for any violation of our comrades’ rights, as well as for any harm to their safety, their lives, and those of their families.
Sincerely,
Chilón Community Government and Organized Communities.
To the National and International Free Autonomous and Alternative Media,
To Indigenous Peoples Resisting for Life and Mother Earth,
To Civil Society Human Rights Organizations and Centers
To National and International Human Rights Bodies, Mechanisms and Special Procedures,
To Municipal, State and Federal Authorities
To the Peoples of Mexico and the World.
We, the members of the Community Government and of the communities organized in resistance against the San Cristóbal–Palenque highway project, have gathered and are making our statement public to denounce the acts of harassment, intimidation, disinformation, and coercion that continue to take place in our communities and territories.
We reject these practices and issue an urgent call to human rights defenders to immediately put an end to this subjugation to which we, as Tseltal Indigenous peoples, are being subjected. We will not accept our words being used to feign agreements that do not exist. In light of this:
We Denounce:
Once again, drones were spotted flying overhead between yesterday and this morning.
These actions are causing concern and fear among families, particularly because they occur amid the constant presence of people linked to the project and the harassment of those participating in the resistance.
The constant surveillance to which we have been subjected.
Faced with these situations, our communities have had to organize patrols and maintain constant vigilance to prevent outsiders from entering without our consent. This has disrupted our daily lives and forced us to remain on guard even within our own homes and communities.
Engineers arrived on our lands today.
On September 18, a group of engineers once again entered our lands without our consent. In response, our communities organized and went to the site to make our decision known to them, once again.
Our position is clear and has not changed:
Our land is neither a commodity nor a space available for government projects. It is the result of the work and struggle of our ancestors, who defended it and worked it so that our families could live on it.
It is the land to which we pray every year and from which we obtain our food. It is where our families are born and raised; where our communities, our animals, our trees, and our waters are found. Our land is alive and is part of our very lives.
That is why we do not accept that outsiders should make decisions about it, enter without our consent, or try to convince us that its destruction can be resolved through economic agreements.
In Light of the Above, We Demand:
1. That our rights as Indigenous peoples and our right to self-determination be respected.
2. That the communities’ decision and our TOTAL REJECTION OF THE SAN CRISTÓBAL–PALENQUE HIGHWAY be respected.
3. That all acts of harassment, pressure, threats, intimidation, defamation, and any form of violence against community members cease immediately, as well as any actions aimed at locating, pressuring, or obtaining signatures, meetings, or documents intended to pass off as community agreements decisions that we have not made freely and collectively.
4. That all actions involving entry, surveillance, or intervention on our lands, in our communities, and on our territories without our consent—including drone overflights—be immediately halted.
5. That the Escazú Agreement, ratified by Mexico on April 22, 2021, be upheld, as such actions violate the provisions of Articles 7 and 9 of that treaty, as well as various international treaties.
We hold the three levels of government, as well as the companies involved, local leaders, and those with political power in the region, accountable for any violent actions that violate our rights.
OUR LAND IS NOT FOR SALE.
OUR LAND MUST BE DEFENDED.
NO TO THE SAN CRISTÓBAL–PALENQUE HIGHWAY!
Community Government and communities organized in resistance
Chilón, Chiapas, September 18, 2026