The Peace Brigades International-Mexico Project has shared:
“On Sunday, 25 January, the Meeting of Peoples in Defence of Water and Forests was held in San Mateo Ozolco, Puebla. Ozolco is a community located on the slopes of the Itzaccíhuatl volcano, which is currently at the centre of a dispute over tree felling.
PBI accompanied the People’s Front in Defence of Land and Water – Morelos, Puebla and Tlaxcala (FPDTA – MPT) as international observers in their participation in this meeting of peoples.
The event was organised by the Committee in Defence of the Forest of San Mateo Ozolco and the National Indigenous Congress.
‘Descendants of landowners intend to cut down the forest on Mount Iztaccíhuatl and thereby destroy the region’s water supply, but as peoples it is our duty to protect the forest that our grandmothers and grandfathers left us to produce water and air for everyone. Let us defend the forest for life, so that we may continue to have water in the Izta-Popo region and the Cholulteca Valley.’ (FPDTA-MPT)
The gathering was an opportunity to forge bonds of solidarity between Ozolco and many communities in the region that are part of the same struggle to defend the forest and water.”
For a video of the Meeting of Peoples in Defence of Water and Forests please click here.
Accompaniment
PBI-Mexico has accompanied the Peoples’ Front in Defence of Land and Water – Morelos, Puebla and Tlaxcala since early 2020.
