Victory: Mexico's La Parota Dam Delayed Until 2018

Communities March Against La Parota Dam (CECOP)

For thousands of people living along the Papagayo River in Guerrero State in Mexico, the news that the destructive and unjust La Parota Dam has been delayed until at least 2018 comes as a huge relief. After a 6-year battle, the Mexican Federal Electricity Commission announced yesterday it is postponing the project, along with nine other electricity projects across the country. The Commission cites the economic downturn as one reason for the postponement, but the real reason is the intense opposition by thousands of small farmers and indigenous people who would lose land, fisheries and other natural resources as a result of the dam.

For those working to defend rivers and rights around the world, the long-term postponement of a major dam project like this is a watershed moment. This victory belongs to the Council of Communal Lands and Communities Opposed to La Parota Dam (CECOP), an inspiring local people's movement that has worked tirelessly to defend their river and their lives from the dam.

Formed in 2003, CECOP is truly a force to be reckoned with. Comprised of more than 5000 people from 39 villages, CECOP decisions are made communally, in assemblies that have been held every Sunday without fail over the past six years. Their tactics have ranged from permanent blockades to prevent construction workers from entering their land, to successful lawsuits challenging the legality of the approval process. The lawsuits are the reason why, despite government efforts, the project has been suspended for the past few years.

A community member is honored for her efforts to stop La Parota Dam. (CECOP)

La Parota (described as former President Vicente Fox's "crown jewel") is an ugly project, made even uglier by the tactics of Mexico's Federal Electricity Commission. As many as 25,000 people would be displaced by the dam, and tens of thousands more downstream would suffer negative impacts because of dam-induced changes to the Papagayo River. Yet the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) used dirty measures to push the project forward, including fake consultations, violent police repression, illegal clearing of land and bribing of local government officials. The CFE's divide-and-rule tactics pitted neighbor against neighbor, resulting in, tragically, the death of two dam opponents: Tomás Cruz Zamora and Eduardo Maya Manrique. This victory also belongs to them.

CECOP's actions spurred the creation of a broader movement that is helping other dam-affected communities across the country. The Mexican Movement of Dam-Affected People, MAPDER, grew out of the La Parota struggle into a national movement that today presents a formidable challenge to President Felipe Calderón's government.

All of us here at International Rivers offer our congratulations to our compañeros and compañeras in Mexico for their tremendous victory, and vow to continue to support their future struggles. ¡El pueblo unido, jamás será vencido!