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CULTURAL SURVIVAL AWARDS GRANTS TO COMMUNITIES TO OBTAIN RADIO FREQUENCY CONCESSIONS IN MEXICO

En español 

Between February and May of 2019, Cultural Survival awarded small grants to Indigenous communities to initiate, continue, or complete procedures to obtain concessions to use a radio frequency in the FM or AM band in Mexico.

In July 2014, the Mexican Federal Telecommunications and Broadcasting Law opened for the first time in the history of the country, since the 2001 constitutional guarantee, the possibility to request concessions to operate radio stations by peoples and Indigenous communities. Cultural Survival, through its Community Media Program, supports Indigenous communities in developing their own media, particularly radio.

After having published two calls, Cultural Survival received proposals for different radio projects in various states of the country. The following recipients were awarded:

Community Radio with an Indigenous focus operated by the Xochitépetl Human Rights Association, located in Huayacocotla, Veracruz. The collective intends to install a community radio station managed and designed by the Indigenous population, as they lack an "effective, mass, and fundamental vehicle for communication between Nahuatl, Hñahñú and Tepehua Indigenous Peoples." According to the collective, the problem is that living in the Sierra Madre Occidental in the north of Veracruz, “they do not have cell phone service, local radio stations, or print media that address the needs and problems that Indigenous Peoples of this region face.”  In the north, Indigenous municipalities have high rate of marginalization and the population is dispersed, not exceeding 2500 inhabitants.

"The lack of communication has isolated us from vital information necessary to exercise our fundamental rights. For this reason, we have been violated mainly because of lack of knowledge and lack of justice. On the other hand, the lack of knowledge of our rights has had a negative impact on our cultural expressions that over time have diminished. Our mother tongues are gradually going silent, because not even the local authorities and a large part of the population know that there are laws that require their revitalization, preservation and development as an essential part of our Indigenous identity,” said members of the Xochitépetl Human Rights Association.

Radio Buë 'Xhidza (Zapotec Air) of the Santa María Foundation for Indigenous and Agroforestry Promotion, A.C. is located in Santa María Yaviche, Oaxaca. The members of Radio Buë Xhidza are developing this radio project to strengthen their Indigenous identities and the linguistic variant of Zapotec they have used for hundreds of years, and to promote cultural expressions of their people through traditional reed flute and drum music. The station produces diverse programs that aim to protect the environment. "La Hormiga Radiofónica Zapoteca" is an initiative carried out by a 14-year-old Zapotec youth. The objective of the program is to raise awareness among the Zapotec community about the importance of caring for Mother Earth.

Community Radio for the Nahuatl People of the Sierra Norte de Puebla,  operated by Tajtolmej Taltipak Collective, represented by the Civil Association for Promotion and Social Development. Located in the depth of the northern mountains, the members of the Tajtolmej collective face the serious problems of invasion of the lands by transnational mining companies. According to community, their project’s objective is "to be a means of communication that is a mobilizer of human energy, community will, resources and support to exercise the right to communication and information that satisfies the information needs of the local population which includes the municipalities of Zautla and Ixtacamaxtitlan." By obtaining a radio license, they will be able to "operate Radio Capolihtic in a legal manner covering the information needs of the Nahuatl people."

Contexto Radio is a project located in Bahía de Kino, Sonora, serving the population of Comcaa'c (Seri). This project, operated by the civil association Voces Colectivas, A.C. will provide communication services to Indigenous communities settled on the west coast of Sonora, in the town of Punta Chueca (or Socaaix en seri).  “The Contexto Radio collective seeks to have a means of communication which promotes the identities of our people, thus highlighting our daily work and not forgetting our roots. Without a doubt, the project  will be a space in which people can analyze issues of collective interest such as human rights, youth care, women’s and children’s rights, citizen participation, peace, gender equality and equity, plurality, Indigenous rights, promotion of our culture and traditions."

Radio Pochota is represented by the civil association Radio Pochota, A.C. This project is located in Amatlán de los Reyes, Veracruz, very close to the sugarcane city of Córdoba. The people of Amatlán, of Nahuatl origin, have practically lost their language; but are working towards revitalization of their Indigenous customs and mother tongue with the help of radio. The collective seeks to support, develop and strengthen Nahuatl Indigenous communities through cultural and informative radio programs directly involving citizen participation. The station aims to disseminate information of public interest to improve the living conditions of the local communities.

Ku'ayuujk Radio is located in the Sierra Mixe in the state of Oaxaca and represents a collective of communal land authorities who make up the civil association CORENAMIICH, A.C. belonging to the Ayuuk people. Ku'ayuujk Radio will produce specialized content with territorial, cultural, and linguistic relevance related to the conservation and sustainable management of local natural resources. Local participation in these processes strengthens the work of CORENAMICH in the coordination of actions among communities, the dissemination of information about human rights concerning Indigenous Peoples, as well as the prevention of risks and the monitoring of local natural resources.