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| Colectivo por el Agua | |
|---|---|
| Name | Colectivo por el Agua |
| Type | Non-governmental organization |
| Founded | 2010s |
| Headquarters | Oaxaca, Mexico |
| Area served | Southern Mexico |
| Focus | Water rights, environmental justice, indigenous rights |
Colectivo por el Agua is a grassroots coalition formed to defend water rights and indigenous access to potable water in southern Mexico, particularly within the state of Oaxaca. The coalition has engaged with communities, non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, and political bodies to challenge large-scale infrastructure projects, municipal policies, and private concessions affecting hydrological resources. Its activities intersect with regional social movements, indigenous organizations, environmental networks, and international human rights mechanisms.
Founded in the early 2010s amid mobilizations against privatization and infrastructure projects, the movement emerged following contested projects in Oaxaca and neighboring states such as Guerrero and Puebla. Early influences included campaigns by Movimiento por la Paz con Justicia y Dignidad, advocacy by the Zapatista Army of National Liberation, and precedents set by Gulf of California conservation debates. The collective drew organizational lessons from networks like Red Nacional de Acción Ecologista and collaborations with universities including the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia. National incidents such as protests related to the Mexican government's energy reforms and international cases like the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe opposition to pipeline projects provided comparative frameworks.
The stated mission emphasizes defense of indigenous water access, protection of watersheds, and opposition to privatization and contamination. Objectives align with principles advanced by the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and environmental standards influenced by decisions in the International Court of Justice. The collective advocates policy changes at levels including municipal cabildos, state legislatures such as the Congress of Oaxaca, and federal bodies like the National Water Commission (CONAGUA). It also partners with organizations including Amnesty International, Greenpeace Mexico, and local indigenous federations such as the Indigenous Governing Council.
Organized as a decentralized network, the coalition adopts assemblies and consensus decision-making informed by models from the Zapatista consulta processes and the Ejido communal governance tradition. Leadership roles rotate among coordinators drawn from affected communities, alongside legal teams connected to law clinics at institutions including the Universidad Iberoamericana and the Universidad de las Américas Puebla. The collective maintains working groups for technical hydrology (collaborating with researchers from the Centro de Investigaciones en Geografía Ambiental), communications involving media partners like Proceso and La Jornada, and international solidarity liaisons engaging with bodies such as Friends of the Earth and the World Social Forum.
Key campaigns have targeted projects like large dams, mining concessions, and water privatization initiatives that overlap with territories of the Mixtec, Zapotec, and Triqui peoples. Actions have included community referendums modeled after practices in the Chiapas consultations, public demonstrations in plazas such as the Zócalo, Mexico City, legal injunctions filed in courts including the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (Mexico), and international advocacy before the United Nations Human Rights Council. The collective has organized watershed monitoring with scientific partners and held exchanges with international movements, including activists from Brazil, Peru, and the United States who opposed projects like the Belo Monte Dam and the Marañón River interventions.
The collective combines community-led litigation with policy advocacy. Legal strategies reference instruments such as the Mexican Constitution provisions on indigenous rights, rulings by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and environmental regulations administered by the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA). Politically, the group has lobbied municipal authorities, engaged with political parties including the Party of the Democratic Revolution and MORENA, and participated in public consultations mandated under laws like the Ley General del Equilibrio Ecológico y la Protección al Ambiente. It has submitted petitions to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and participated in international human rights reporting mechanisms tied to the Universal Periodic Review.
Within affected communities, the coalition has been credited with increasing local capacity for legal defense, elevating indigenous participation in municipal decisions, and strengthening technical monitoring of water quality through collaborations with institutions such as the National Autonomous University of Mexico and regional laboratories. Reception among civil society has included endorsements from environmental NGOs like Conservation International affiliates and criticism from municipal water utilities and private firms, while national media coverage has appeared in outlets such as El Universal and Milenio. The collective’s mobilizations have influenced municipal ordinances in towns across Mixteca and Valles Centrales regions.
Critics, including business associations and some municipal administrations, argue that the collective’s opposition can hinder infrastructure development and investment promoted by entities such as private water operators and multinational firms. Debates have arisen over tactics—some accuse the group of obstructing legally authorized projects, while supporters point to international precedents upheld by the Inter-American Court protecting prior consultation. Internal controversies have involved disputes with certain indigenous authorities and tensions with political parties like Partido Revolucionario Institucional affiliates in local contexts. Allegations have occasionally led to legal challenges and counter-litigation in state courts such as those of Oaxaca.
Category:Environmental organizations based in Mexico Category:Indigenous rights organizations Category:Water security