Volunteers sorting recyclable material at the Ajijic Recycling Center in West Ajijic.
Patrick O’Heffernan (Ajijic).- After years of neglect by the former administration, recycling in Ajijic is back on track, thanks to former and now current Committee Chairwoman Esther Prada and cooperation from the new Chapala Director of Ecology, Lic. María Guadalupe Vázquez Solano. The citizens committee that handles recycling for Ajijic has been appointed, with all by one position, secretary, filled. The committee manages the recycling center on the Carretera in West Ajijic, and handles some pickup of recyclable materials from the blue barrels.
The center’s work has been slowed for some time due to the lack of a compactor to compress processed materials before they are trucked to Guadalajara for sale. Reciclaje Ajijic operates out of a former military training center now owned by the government. Materials are delivered to the center, sorted, cleaned and packed for transport. While the committee owns a compactor, bought with donated funds, the previous administration was not helpful in connecting electricity to the center to operate it. Appointing a new committee was the first step toward CFE assigning an address and connecting power to the compactor.
Prada was able to negotiate the committee’s formation as part of her drive to obtain commitments from the municipality that they will continue support for the center and guarantees that equipment installed at the center will remain with Reciclaje Ajijic if a new administration is elected. In a meeting with Ecology Director Vázquez Solano., Laguna found her to be enthusiastic about the program and to systematically seeing the process through with Reciclaje Ajijic and possibly expand recycling to other delegations
Reciclaje Ajijic is asking for volunteers to assist them in processing the backlog of materials at the center. Those interested can contact Reciclaje Ajijic volunteer coordinator Colleen Kissinger at reciclajeajijic@gmail.com.
Relatives of the security officer walked through the delegation of San Juan Cosalá as a tribute on March 21. Photo: Courtesy.
One of the two Jocotepec police officers killed in the confrontation with armed persons on March 10 was finally honored more than 10 days after he died. Relatives of Andrés Inclán Zamora paid tribute to his service as a security officer on March 21.
The municipal president, José Miguel Gómez López, postponed the official tribute due to violence in the municipality since holding an event with crowds of people was considered “high risk.”
Around five o’clock in the afternoon on March 21, Inclán Zamora’s relatives, people from the community and some of his colleagues at the police station celebrated the memory of the murdered policeman. The emotional event, which lasted more than an hour, began on Porfirio Diaz Street in San Juan Cosala. It was attended by about 70 people who, in tears, said goodbye to their friend, brother, family member, father and husband.
Accompanied at all times by police officers and escorted by a marching band, the relatives of Andrés Inclán recalled with nostalgia and pride stories about the life of the passionate policeman. «He was the oldest of 11 siblings, but he always took care of me and my sisters, he was very good,» said one of his sisters. She added that Inclán Zamora began his police career more than 10 years ago. Although he served as an officer off and on, «it was something he always liked, there is no doubt about that.»
Although his family said that the municipality took care of approximately 60 percent of the funeral expenses, they regretted the position and «silence» of the municipal authorities.
Translated by Elisabeth Shields
Two windows were placed at the base of the kiosk that would serve as a display area for the merchants. Photo: Courtesy.
Editor: Contrary to the original plan, the fruit vendors located next to the DIF building in Jocotopec will not be moving to the base of the kiosk in the main square.
Semanario Laguna originally reported that the two street vendors who continued to sell on the public road would occupy the space, which has been adapted so that they could offer their products from inside the historic infrastructure. But there may be a change of plans.
The current plan is to use the space for tourist purposes, which have not yet been specified, and although we have tried to request information through social networks, there has been no response.
The original idea of putting vendors in the kiosk caused controversy among citizens, both in social networks, as well as people consulted in public, considering that it was a public property with historical importance.
«I can’t believe what they want to do. It’s an historical space, and besides, what are the poor vendors going to do locked up all day in that small space? It doesn’t seem right to me,» commented one Jocotepec resident.
«I’m not against the merchants, but it wouldn’t be appropriate. It’s one of the tourist images we have. People come to visit the town and the first thing they look for is the main square to take a souvenir photo. There are other spaces where the merchants can be located,» wrote Lupita Becerra in social networks.
In contrast, both the former director of social communication, Felipe Aguilar Montes de Oca, and one of the Public Services workers who worked on the intervention of the space, commented that the kiosk would indeed be suitable for installing street vendors.
«This adaptation work is being done inside the kiosk for only one of the fruit vendors who have yet to be relocated. As far as I know, it is for the one who has been selling here in the plaza the longest,» Montes de Oca said in this regard.
Although an attempt was made to contact the City Hall to find out the reasons why the project was revised, as well as the new project for which it will be destined, there was no response.
Translated by Sandy Britton
Due to the lack of water, neighbors in the center of the delegation have had to pay for water delivery trucks for their water supply. Photo: Alma Serrano.
Alma Serrano(San Juan Cosalá).- Residents of the San Juan Cosalá delegation in the municipality of Jocotepec, have been suffering from a shortage of drinking water for months, and the problem has worsened during the dry season.
Even before the failure of the engine on the Zaragoza well registered on March 13, residents said they live with little availability of the liquid, which has forced them to spend on water delivery trucks to supply their demand.
«I have a lot of water containers to cope with the little water that is arriving, because some days there is no water, some days there is; or a trickle of water arrives all day. It is not enough, we have to pay for water delivery every two weeks or there is no way to bathe or wash the dishes,» said an annoyed citizen.
Those interviewed said they considered it unfair to pay for a service they do not receive. Also, distribution of water in the delegation is unequal, because a few enjoy a lot of water while the majority lives without enough.
«I am not going to bathe in the lake, nor am I going to wash there. Before we did not have to pay for it, but now we pay and they have to send us water in bulk, commented another person affected by the shortage.
The water operator in San Juan Cosalá, Samuel Tolentino, said that after repairs, the Zaragoza well is working again though only at 75 percent of its capacity, which has caused the population to get water by other means. Tolentino considers that the only solution to the shortage is to drill another well.
«The water well (Zaragoza) is working at 75 percent because it is pumping a lot of sand. The solution would be a new well,» he said.
Translated by Elisabeth Shields
At least 58 students from public and private elementary schools took the test. Photo courtesy.
Editor.- The Terranova Institute recently hosted the 2022 math skills test of the Jalisco State Mathematics League (LIMATEJ) tournament for elementary school children from school zone 96.
Fifty-eight students from public and private schools took the two-hour test on Wednesday, March 23. One student, Ángela López de la Cerda, solved the test in only 20 minutes. She will represent Terranova in the regional finals.
The tournament, promoted by the Ministry of Education of Jalisco, was held in Terranova Institute’s facilities.
Translated by Mike Rogers
A large ceiba or kapok tree choked by the concrete for the construction of the bicycle path. Photo: Alma Serrano.
Alma Serrano (San Juan Cosala).- At least three trees are being killed by the construction of the bicycle lane in the San Juan Cosalá section.
A ficus, a plum tree, and a large ceiba (kapok, a most sacred tree for the ancient Maya and symbol of the universe), located in the block between Cuauhtémoc and Tacuba streets, were left without space for irrigation or growth after the concrete was placed for the bicycle lane.
«I don’t know why they cemented in the trees, if the tree grows it can damage the cement. And I don’t understand why they cut other trees down» commented one of the neighbors.
In addition to these, neighbors in the area denounced the felling of other trees for the construction of the road that began in November of last year and is expected to be finished by the end of March 2022.
Translated by Kerry Watson
The incident remained just a scare.
A tragedy was avoided by Civil Protection and Firefighters after the report of two minors who had entered Lake Chapala in the area of Ajijic, during the afternoon of March 22. The minors were trapped in nets used by fishermen and could not get out of the Lake. Emergency personnel were able to free them, but emergency services were called and arrived with ambulances and firefighters.
Patrick O’Heffernan
Jocotepec President José Miguel Gómez López and the Jocotepec Council deserve high praise for their handling of the pensions for the families of the two officers brutally ambushed while working an accident scene near San Cristóbal Zapotitlán on Thursday. And praise for the people of JOcoepe for the march honoring the slain civil servants Wednesday. Two paramedics who were also attending the accident were also injured in the senseless attack, according to the story published by my colleague Hector Ruiz Mejia.
Despite the opinion of the municipal labor office that the seniority of the officers only entitled their families to 30% of their pensions, President Gómez López wisely proposed and the Council passed a resolution awarding the officers’ families 100% of their pension. This was especially welcome because officer Andrés Inclán Zamora had been on the force for less than 2 months and officer Edgar Omar Leal Nava had been on the force for only two years– terms that would normally limit their pensions. Their devastated families expected further hardship; instead the Jocotepec Council gave them a lifeline.
Mexican communities do not adequately honor and reward their police officers. In fact, until 2018, there was not even a public database of officers killed in the line of duty, according to the NPO, Causa in Common. Now there is, thanks to a joint effort by more than 30 activists and journalists who collect and publish data on police officers killed or wounded in the line of duty every year.
The findings are startling: 452 police officers were killed in 2018, 446 officers were killed in 2019, and so far this year, at least 338 police officers died violently in the line of duty.
And, because of chronically tight budgets, every municipality in Mexico has too few police and it underpays and under equips the ones it has. The National Public Security System (SNSP) and the National Minimum Wage Commission (Conasami) found in a 2021 study, A Living Wage for Police in Mexico, that the average annual salary of a police officer is $350US a month – about what they could make as laborer. The study recommended that starting salaries for police in Mexico be raised to $680 month – a tough sell for municipalities strapped for cash because of stingy state and federal funding.
So, it is doubly inspiring that, in the face of grossly inadequate funding from state and federal governments, the Jocotepec Council voted to give 100% pensions to the families of the slain police officers. Not only was it the right and compassionate thing to do, but it also sent a signal to the nation – and especially to the national and state governments – municipalities need funds to honor and adequately pay their police forces.
Thank you and congratulations to the Jocotepec government for setting an example. Let’s hope they notice in Jalisco and Mexico City.
Jocotepec police building located in the municipal capital. Photo: Archive.
Staff.- The killing of two unarmed policemen and the wounding of first responders March 10 on the Guadalajara-Morelia highway height of San Cristóbal, highlighted the fact that the Jocotepec Public Security Corporation, charged with ensuring the welfare of the town and its 13 localities, is operating without necessary equipment or sufficient personnel , and spurred an agreement for joint operations with State Police in the municipality.
The joint operations are designed to insure the safety of the citizens and the officers until the governor and the president obtain additional funding for weapons, equipment and more policemen and policewomen in the municipality.
A former municipal police officer, who preferred to keep his name anonymous for fear of reprisals, said that the police station does not have enough weapons, personnel, or the support of the municipality to carry out its work.
The interviewee described the conditions under which the uniformed officers operate as “precarious,” due to the fact that they lack social security despite the fact that their work serving the community is considered high risk.
«In reality, there are no bullets, only the ones they carry or that they purchase; but the truth is that there are no weapons. In a violent confrontation they would not last five minutes,» said the former police officer.
Although Semanario Laguna sought to confirm the information provided by the former policeman,representatives of the municipality of Jocotepec were not available to answer or comment on the matter.
Resignation of personnel is also a constant problem in the force. In December of last year alone, according to Felipe Aguilar Montes de Oca, former director of social communication, the municipality had only 44 officers distributed in two shifts.
During the March 17 ordinary session of the Jocotepec City Council, municipal president José Miguel Gómez López stated that after the March 10 armed attack that left two policemen murdered, six policemen, as well as commissioner Juan Jesús Hermosillo Moreno, had resigned.
«After the death of the two officers, six more officers resigned from the force. The officers feel unprotected by the lack of equipment, by the lack of protection; situations that are not a direct responsibility of the administration but how resources have been lacking for us to make investments in security,» Gómez López said.
Gómez López explained that because the municipality is officially classified as having a population of less than 50,000 inhabitants, it has not been able to access substantial resources to strengthen the municipal police, although he did point out that they already have life insurance. At its last meeting, the council voted to award the families of the slain officers 100% of their pensions to demonstrate their support for the police and to recognize their bravery.
Translated by MaryAnne Marble and Patrick O’Heffernan
Two members of the Fire Department were wounded by gunshots while attending a collision on March 10. Photo: Archive.
A female firefighter wounded in a roadside attack March 10 has been discharged from the hospital and is beginning rehabilitation. The other wounded member of the Jocotepec Civil Protection and Firefighters is still hospitalized but showing improvement.
A source close to the victims reported that after having spent about 12 days in the hospital, the woman was discharged. She suffered three bullet wounds in the abdomen during the armed attack that left two Jocotepec policemen dead.
Despite the seriousness of her injuries, she will begin her recovery at home. There was no indication how long her rehabilitation will last, or if she will have continuing medical issues.
At press time, the male firefighter was still hospitalized but conscious and stable, according to the source. He suffered serious injuries after being shot three times in the leg and thorax, but the source said he is out of danger. “He is still hospitalized but he is stable, in fact all the time, thanks to God, he has been conscious,” the person said. There was no indication how long he would be hospitalized.
The municipality of Jocotepec has covered all medical expenses required to safeguard the life of the two firefighters, as well as their entire stay in the hospital.
Translated by Mike Rogers
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