San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas. Members of the Movement in Defense of Life and Territory (Modevite) protested in the city because indigenous peoples “have not been consulted regarding the construction of megaprojects such as the Palenque-Ocosingo-San Cristóbal highway.”
The approximately 30 people demonstrated in San Cristóbal’s Plaza Catedral, where they held a traditional ceremony before traveling to Mexico City to participate in a forum on July 8.
Domingo Miranda López, one of Modevite’s representatives in the municipality of Chilón, explained that at the forum they will discuss “right living,” self-determination, and community consultation.
“We indigenous peoples are seeing that in various municipalities, there are no consultations regarding megaprojects, or if there are, they are rigged,” he lamented.
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In an interview, he noted that the Modevite delegation would leave San Cristóbal on Monday afternoon and arrive in the nation’s capital on Tuesday morning. “We are ready to fight to defend our land and territory because that is where life lies,” the representative asserted.
He insisted that various communities in municipalities in the northern part of the state oppose the construction of the highway, because many families will lose their plots of land and have nowhere to go.
He expressed that the affected communities “are turning to Modevite because they know we are defending life and territory.” He added, “It pains me because there are people who have nothing but a small piece of land, and if they lose it, they will be severely affected. We have sacred hills where prayers are offered and where there are springs.”
Original text by Elio Henríquez published in La Jornada on July 7th, 2026.
Translated by Schools for Chiapas.