Zapatistas' Other Campaign: Cucapa Fishing Rights

Support the Cucapah Struggle in Baja
by Manuel Tzunum Aparicio
Thursday March 22, 2007 at 04:23 PM

The Other Campaign at Cucapah El Mayor, Baja California
QuickTime movie at 2.3 mebibytes
The plight of the Cucapah from El Mayor is one of access to dwindling water sources, to be allowed to continue their millenary fishing activity in what is known as the Reserve of the Biosphere of the Upper Gulf of California and the Delta of the Colorado River, for a culturally relevant and fulfilling education for their children, for the legalization and protection of their land, as well as access to medical services to Cucapah El Mayor community. With a population of about 300 Cucapahs, they are facing the disappearance of their people off the face of the earth. They have now chosen to take a stance in claiming their right to exist as Cucapahs. Local, state, and federal agencies continue to ignore their demands and treat them as if they don’t exist. They have been discriminated as indigenous people while their rights continue to be restricted to the maximum, and for many years they have had no real social or economic growth in their community. The predator simply don’t think about El Mayor. In order to solve the historic problem of this continual violation of their fishing, land, cultural, economic, spiritual, and linguistic rights, The Cucapah People of El mayor are taking a stand on defense of their land and the survival of their people at Cucapah El Mayor, Baja California. As a result, a national/international encampment, aligned to the Other Campaign, is currently being established to support their struggle for survival (February-May 2007). This is a call for your support to the Cucapah struggle for self-determination, and ensure a sovereign future for the Cucapah people.
http://www.arizona.indymedia.org
Photo: Manuel Tzunum