Hi All: This was forwarded to me, and I thought ECOFEM participants might find it of interest. Stefanie ------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- I'm forwarding this from a Mexican human rights list-serve. This call for help is from a grassroots conservation organization (the hope for the future, I think) and illustrates the important interdependence of conservation and human rights. Sue Daniels Virginia Tech Biology >Date: Mon, 20 Apr 1998 23:21:41 -0400 (EDT) >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Multiple Recipients of List Mexico2000) >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (EMILE SAWYER) >Subject: Please help us save the Nayarit Coast of Mexico from Golf > >Dear Friends, > >Please receive a cordial greeting from our non-profit organization whose >purpose it to care for and protect our local community resources and the >ecology of this planet, as well as to stand for the defense of human >rights. > >Being located in an important zone of the wetlands in the municipality of >San Blas, Nayarit, Mexico we are witnessing with great concern how the >overdevelopment that has taken place a little south of here in Puerto >Vallarta has attracted the attention of big investing consortiums and >spurred the ambitions of politicians and senior government officials from >this country, resulting in a hoarding of lands, federal zones and >mangroves for the purpose of commercial development. > >At this moment, various shrimp farming projects of several thousand >hectares ( times 2.5 acres) are already under way. In particular a >project of the "Granjas Aquanova, S.A. de C.V." company, which has >already had a devastating impact on the ecosystem of this region; >contaminating the estuaries with the residual waters and deforesting vast >areas of mangroves. They have another project that is with the support >of the State and Federal governments that will destroy several thousand >hectares more. > >In the field of tourism there are also negotiations for two mega >-projects that would use more than 3500 hectares of Federal Zones and >mangroves for the construction of 6 golf courses, more than 10 luxury >hotels, marinas, etc. All of this is to take place with the consent of >the local authorities who are now using repression to silence our >demands. They argue that our demands are politically motivated. In the >last two years or so we have done our best to delay in all possible ways, >the progress of these projects. > >But seeing the grave dangers now facing the ecosystem of this region, we >are now turning to you for help and asking you for urgent and heavy >intervention before the authorities of our countries in order to remind >them of, and make sure that they respect the agreements on environmental >protection that exist between our countries as embodied in the "Parallel >Agreements on Environmental Cooperation" of the NAFTA. > >UNTIL 30 YEARS AGO WE HAD THOUSANDS OF SEA TURTLES COMING TO LAY EGGS ON >OUR SHORES EVERY YEAR. NOW THEY ARE GONE FOREVER! WE DON'T WANT THE SAME >THING TO HAPPEN WITH ALL THE MIGRATING BIRDS AS THE MANGROVES ARE TURNED >INTO SHRIMP FARMING PONDS AND GOLF COURSES. > >We are too well aware of the enormous demands made upon your time and >help from all parts of the world. But having resorted with little success >to denunciation and lawsuits at the government level. We feel that we >have no alternative and realize that the vested interests and corruption >we are faced with are of international proportions. We feel that we have >no alternative left but to turn for help to international ecological >groups committed to the defense of the planet's health and ask them to >intervene on our behalf, given the importance of these wetlands in the >food chain and the future of life on earth. We thank you for your >attention and look forward to hearing from you. > >Sincerely yours, > >GRUPO ECOLOGICO MANGAR A.C. >San Blas, Nayarit, Mexico >[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Fax: 3321-3-10-10 > >--------- End forwarded message ---------- ************************************ Dr. Stefanie S. Rixecker Division of Environmental Management & Design Lincoln University, Canterbury PO Box 56 Aotearoa New Zealand E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Fax: 64-03-325-3841 ************************************
