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Arantepacua

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Arantepacua
Arantepacua is located in Michoacán
Arantepacua
Arantepacua
Arantepacua is located in Mexico
Arantepacua
Arantepacua
Coordinates: 19°35′44″N 101°58′06″W / 19.59556°N 101.96833°W / 19.59556; -101.96833
Population
 (2020)
 • Total3,505

Arantepacua is a locality located in the municipality of Nahuatzen, in the Mexican state of Michoacán. As of 2020, it has a population of 3,505.[1] Arantepacua's autonomous form of governance, and environmental policies, have drawn comparisons to nearby municipality of Cherán.[2]

History

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Since the 1950s, Arantepacua has had a territorial dispute with the neighboring community of Capácuaro [es] over 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) of forested land.[3] Locals allege that by the 2010s, Arantepacua had a longstanding feud with the state government, due to such territorial disputes, and claimed that state police were overzealous in policing the town as a result.[2]

On 4 April 2017, a delegation from Arantepacua had traveled to the nearby city of Morelia to meet with representatives.[3] On the way back, state police stopped and arrested the delegation.[3] Members of the delegation said the state police accused them of blocking a nearby road, and stealing their vehicle, and that the state police beat and used tear gas on them.[3]

On 5 April 2017, residents of Arantepacua protested the arrest of the delegates, and blockaded a highway running through the settlement.[3] That day, Michoacán state police conducted a raid on the settlement with the stated purpose of retrieving stolen vehicles.[2] Some locals claim that the raid that day was a guise for state police to punish the Arantepacua for these disputes.[3] Eyewitnesses allege that the raid consisted of more than 800 police officers, who started firing live bullets indiscriminately.[3] The raid killed four people,[2][3][4] and resulted in 38 arrests,[4] and 31 people injured.[4] Mexico's National Human Rights Commission called the events that day "serious violations of the rights to life, liberty, security and personal integrity - due to acts constituting torture -, of meeting, to the best interest of children and a life free of violence, to the detriment of the indigenous population".[4]

The following day, Arantepacua set up a makeshift checkpoint to prevent police entry, and began overhauling its local government.[2] In the aftermath of the raid, Arantepacua applied for autonomy, which the Constitution of Mexico allows for Indigenous communities.[2] Arantepacua was formally granted autonomy in 2018.[2]

Demographics

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As of 2020, Arantepacua has a population of 3,505, comprising 1,690 males, and 1,815 females.[1] 1,027 of its residents (29.30%) are aged 14 and under, 900 (25.68%) are aged 15 to 29, 1,202 (34.29%) are aged 30 to 59, and 376 (10.73%) are aged 60 and older.[1] Mexico's National Institute of Statistics and Geography classifies 140 of its residents (3.99%) as disabled.[1]

Environmental issues

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Various neighboring communities to Arantepacua, including Carácuaro and Turícuaro [es], have significantly expanded avocado cultivation in the early 2020s, which some Arantepacua residents say has resulted in deforestation, water scarcity, and significant agrochemical usage.[2] Upon achieving autonomy in 2018, Arantepacua's new government outlawed avocado cultivation on communal forests.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Arantepacua, Nahuatzen, Michoacán de Ocampo (160560002)". www.inegi.org.mx (in Spanish). National Institute of Statistics and Geography. Archived from the original on 2024-06-11. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Sammon, Alexander (2024-06-11). "Inside Mexico's anti-avocado militias". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2024-06-11. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Contreras Camero, Arturo (2020-02-20). "En Arantepacua, la represión avivó la autonomía" [In Arantepacua, repression fueled autonomy]. Pie de Página (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
  4. ^ a b c d "Indígenas exigen investigar a exgobernador de Michoacán por masacre de 2017". Síntesis Nacional (in Spanish). 2023-04-06. Archived from the original on 2023-04-07. Retrieved 2024-06-11.