Maya Villagers in Trouble for Protesting Maya Train!

Tren Maya, S.A. de C.V., a state-owned company overseen by the Secretariat of National Defense, has reported residents of the Citilcum community to the Prosecutor's Office. The community is located in the municipality of Izamal, approximately 41 kilometers east of Merida, Yucatan. The residents, of Maya origin, were reported for protesting against the construction of a railway track that divided their town from the local primary school, making access for parents and students difficult. The route of the Maya Train also affected some homes and crop fields.

The company demanded that five parents who participated in the protest, held in mid-May 2024, publicly apologize and sign a document promising not to complain about the Maya Train again in order to drop the complaint. The five individuals, three mothers and two fathers, are residents of Citilcum, an indigenous commissioner's office in the municipality of Izamal. This community lies within the route of Track 3 of the Maya Train, which spans 150 kilometers from Calkiní, in Campeche, to Izamal, in Yucatan.

The community's concern is that the Maya Train's route separates them from the "Manuel Rodriguez Acosta" and "Benito Juarez" primary schools. These schools, located in the town of Kimbila, serve approximately 250 students who have called for the relocation of the educational facilities.

The company managing the train created a tunnel for residents to access the schools. However, the project was delayed and rejected by parents who feared the route to school would become more dangerous due to its connection with vehicular access.

On May 18, dozens of people protested and blocked the train track with stones, sticks, and branches. As a result, members of the Army, National Guard, and the Secretariat of Security and Public Protection were called to the site. The director of the Maya Train, General Óscar David Lozano Águila, arrived the following day to speak with the residents. The tracks were cleared, but the residents continued to demand the school's relocation.

A month later, five of the individuals who participated in the blockade were informed that they had been reported to the FGR by Tren Maya, S.A. de C.V., for obstruction of federal communication routes. On July 30, the accused individuals had to testify before officials from the Maya Train. Accompanied by Commissioner Manuel Jesús Chan Rabell as a witness, they signed an "apology document", promising not to repeat such acts "to the detriment of the company and its users".