"On a summer evening in southern Mexico, a percussion group using water bottles as instruments leads a procession through Merida, capital of Yucatan state. Children walking alongside elderly people are guided by members of Muuch' Xiinbal, a Maya land rights organisation. The placards they carry declare: Water is not for sale. A heavy chant accompanies the march: It's not a drought it's plunder! At a rallying point in the city, protesters read from a manifesto"
"But they reserve their greatest anger for the Heineken brewery in Kanasin, near Merida, which was announced in June. To many of Yucatan's Maya people, the plans for the Heineken factory are seen not as a promising development, but as a continuation of a deeper problem: of government-backed industrial developments that threaten water supplies and human rights, leaving local communities caught in an uneven conflict to protect their cultural and environmental survival."
"As part of a $2.75bn (2.05bn) investment plan, the Heineken brewery is expected to generate 2,500 jobs, directly and indirectly, including 300 permanent positions. Indigenous communities have criticised a lack of community consent disputing the company's claim that consultations took place last December and raising concerns about its environmental impacts, particularly the effects of its water use on local communities."
A percussion group in Merida leads a procession as Maya land rights members guide children and elders carrying placards that read 'Water is not for sale.' Protesters chant 'It's not a drought it's plunder' and read a manifesto accusing the government of prioritising profit over water, health and land. They denounce mega-projects imposed without consent, including industrial pig farms and the Maya Train expansion. Anger focuses on a planned Heineken brewery in Kanasin, with communities warning it threatens water supplies and human rights. Heineken touts job creation while indigenous groups dispute consultations and warn of environmental impacts.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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