Suriname cancels controversial Mennonite pilot program, but bigger problems loom

[Judi Lynn]

1. One of many earlier articles: Deforestation on the rise in Quintana Roo, Mexico, as Mennonite communities move in

by Robin Canul, VALERIA CONTRERAS on 15 March 2023 | Translated by Matthew Rose

Mennonite families began to arrive in the southern Mexican municipality of Bacalar in 2001.

They swiftly bought land, became members of the local ejido — an area of communally owned agricultural land — and then founded their own.

Their presence in the region has continued to grow, along with the level of deforestation.

Satellite imagery and field visits reveal vast swaths of rainforest have been cleared for large-scale agriculture.

BACALAR, Mexico — Less than a decade ago the El Bajío ejido — a form of communal land in Mexico —consisted primarily of rainforest. Today, the landscape is vastly different, with vast open fields of soybeans, sorghum and corn. This transformation was brought about by the mechanized agricultural activities of Mennonite families who began settling in the southern part of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo in the early 2000s.

“In the past, we could enter on horseback, but since they [the Mennonites] came, they have made many roads for us,” said Rigoberto, an ejidatario — or communal landowner — in his eighties who has witnessed the transformation of the land.



Mennonite colonies only began to establish themselves in the municipality of Bacalar a little over two decades ago. Image by Robin Canul.

The mechanized agricultural practices employed by the Mennonites, a religious group of European origin known for their extensive monoculture plantations and demand for permanent land rights, have faced opposition from some of the region’s residents, who say they are flouting environmental regulations.

“They cut down thousands of hectares … there is a lot of illegal logging with them,” said one member of Kabi Habin, a cooperative of Quintana Roo beekeepers. The member, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, said large-scale agriculture has spread from what is now known as the Salamanca ejido – the first place where the Mennonites arrived back in 2001 – to other parts of the municipality.

More:
https://news.mongabay.com/2023/03/deforestation-on-the-rise-in-southern-mexico-as-mennonite-communities-move-in/