Chapala

 Vehicle involved in the crash.

A crash between two private vehicles and a patrol car during the early morning of January 30, on the Chapala Jocotepec highway near Tobolandia left two people injured and the total loss of one vehicle. 

One of the vehicles involved was a State Police patrol car with the number JR-90788 containing four officers, one of whom suffered minor injuries. The patrol car suffered damage to the rear.

A 40 year-old resident of Ajijic was driving another of the vehicles, a sand-colored Ford Ranger, which suffered damage to the front and left side of the vehicle.

The third vehicle was a pick-up truck driven by a 50 year-old Expat who resides in Las Redes. He was pinned and had to be rescued using a hydraulic tool. A video shows the man admitting that he was the cause of the accident, as he entered the road with his lights off. 

Translated by Sydney Metrick

Lake Chapala. Photo: Arturo Ortega.

Editor.– Did you celebrate Lake Chapala Day this year? Chances are you did not, since despite being established by official state decree in 2014, the initiative has largely been forgotten. Jalisco’s Lake Chapala Day is supposed to be commemorated on February 2 each year, but the authorities at both the municipal and state levels appear to have forgotten it, and so the day passed unobserved by both lakeside municipalities and their inhabitants. 

Originally, promoters of Lake Chapala Day sought to highlight the importance of the lake both for lakeside inhabitants and the state. They also intended it to bring attention to the need to protect and conserve the lake for the future. 

«It is the obligation of the municipalities, in coordination with the Executive Branch, to celebrate the State Lake Chapala Day through activities that promote awareness of, and appreciation for, the importance of the area. This to be achieved through festivities and strategies that engage and educate the public,» states the ignored decree.  

February 2 was selected to commemorate Lake Chapala Day as it was on this day in 2009 that Lake Chapala won designation as a Wetlands of International Importance, or Ramsar site. The goal of the Ramsar convention was to promote the preservation and sustainable use of essential wetlands around the globe.

 The state initiative was presented by Jesús Palos Vaca, the local deputy of the 17th district and member of the Ecologist Green Party of Mexico (PVEM) and resident of Jocotepec. The decree was published in the Official Newspaper of the State of Jalisco in December 2014. 

Translated by Rebecca Zittle

Patrol of the prosecutor’s office of Jalisco.

Julio César was arrested by the Investigation Police of the Jalisco State Prosecutor’s Office, after a warrant was issued for his arrest for aggravated child sexual abuse.

The suspect has been accused of committing the abuse against a female minor in July 2020. This incident allegedly occurred in the delegation of Las Trojes, in Jocotepec. 

Officers of the Investigation Police of District V arrested him and placed him in custody at the Specialized Judge in Control, Prosecution, Integral Justice for Adolescents and Penal Execution of the Fifth Judicial District with headquarters in Chapala. He will be prosecuted accordingly. 

Translated by Christalle Dalsted

Lake Chapala. Photo: Arturo Ortega.

Commemoration of the State Day of Lake Chapala on February 2 went unnoticed by the community’s residents  this year. Despite being an official decree since 2014, authorities at both the municipal and state levels of government appear to have abandoned the State Day of Lake Chapala.

Originally, the State Day sought to highlight the importance of the lake for the residents of Lakeside and of Jalisco, as well as constituting another layer of  protection and conservation for the Lake.

«It is the obligation of the municipalities, in coordination with the Executive Branch of the entity, to celebrate the State Day of Lake Chapala through activities that enrich the knowledge, awareness of the protection and importance of the place through strategies, mechanism and actions necessary to bring to fruition the festivities of that day,» states the 2014 decree.

The law was presented by the local deputy of the 17th district, Jesús Palos Vaca of the Ecologist Green Party of Mexico (PVEM) and neighbor of Jocotepec. The initiative was published in the Official Newspaper of the State of Jalisco in December 2014. 

This State Day was enacted when Lake Chapala and its 114,659 hectares was named as a Ramsar Site on February 2, 2009, joining a list of wetlands of international importance under UNESCO’s Convention on Wetlands.

Translated by MaryAnne Marble

Authorities of Chapala, the Jalisco State Cycling Association, and the Rayo family announced the first mountain biking competition.

Jazmín Stengel.- The Municipality of Chapala, the Jalisco State Cycling Association, and the Rayo family,announced the competition «Serial Chapala Summit 2022» with prizes totaling 60,000 pesos, 

During the press conference, the organizers explained that the Serial consists of four stages to be held in the municipalities of Chapala, Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos and Jocotepec, with the goal of selecting those who will represent Jalisco in national competitions.

The first stage begins in the municipality of Chapala on February 26 with the «Short Track» circuit at the maximum possible speed. The second will be «Cross Country» style and will take place on February 27 in the town of San Nicolás de Ibarra, on the road to the dam, with a route of almost six kilometers.

These two competitions will have a prize purse of 60,000 pesos; 20,000 for the first day and 40,000 for the second. 

The purpose of this activity «in addition to attracting sports tourism, is to encourage young people to participate in healthy activities» added the president of Chapala, Alejandro de Jesús Aguirre Curiel, during the conference. 

For this reason, the organizers of the «Serial Summit Chapala 2022» decided to give free registration to all children from the municipalities where the competition is taking place.  During the first stage of the race. children under 14 years of age from Chapala will be able to participate free of charge.

Adults pay a general fee of 100 pesos for the «Short Track» race; while for the «Cross Country» race the registration fee is 350 pesos for adults and 150 pesos for children. The registration fee includes sports packages with t-shirt, competitor’s number, GPS for accident coverage and a  600ml  bottle of PC Bikes tubeless tire sealant.

For the third and fourth stages, tentatively to be held in Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos in April and in Jocotepec in June, respectively, the validation of the Jalisco State Cycling Association is being awaited. For the closing event, a cycling marathon is planned between the towns of Atotonilquillo, San Nicolás and Santa Cruz de la Soledad. No information is available on the registration fee.

Registration is open now through the day of the competition, February 26 at 2:00 pm, at the Bicicletas Rayo at their Ajijic location on carretera poniente 9b (331 292-4228); and at their Chapala location on Juárez 588 (332 130-0393). A Bancomer account number 4152 3137 9395 6066 has been established for non-Mexicans who wish to register.  For more information call (332 791-6475).

Translated by Kerry Watson

Fotografía de catálogo Nissan 2022.

Jazmín Stengel.- Las delegaciones de Atotonilquillo, San Nicolás de Ibarra y Santa Cruz de la Soledad,  se verán beneficiadas con el apoyo de dos camionetas Urvan más, que fueron adquiridas por comodato para labores de asistencia pública y transporte escolar.

Una de estas unidades estará destinada a transportar a los alumnos de las escuelas “Primaria Leona Vicario” y “Secundaria Guadalupe Victoria”, en Santa Cruz de la Soledad, debido a que la solicitud se realizó con anticipación, como se dio a conocer en la última sesión de cabildo celebrada el sábado 29 de enero.

El otro vehículo estará principalmente al servicio social de las poblaciones de San Nicolás y Atotonilquillo, la localidad más alejada del municipio donde se planea un itinerario para facilitar el transporte de habitantes con enfermedades o discapacidades físicas.

La regidora María Isabel Mendoza Rodríguez propuso crear un padrón de alumnos que utilizan el transporte escolar municipal mediante un registro de credenciales, con el objetivo facilitar la planeación de las rutas para las unidades disponibles a este servicio y así lograr mejorar el mismo.

Los vehículos Nissan tipo Urvan 2020 color blanco, con un costo aproximado entre los 250 y 300 mil pesos en el mercado, con capacidad para 15 personas, se suman a las cuatro y un camión de 35 pasajeros que ya circulan en el municipio, tanto en sus diferentes delegaciones como en la cabecera municipal.

Las dos unidades nuevas fueron adquiridas en comodato por el municipio mediante el programa de apoyo para transporte de estudiantes que encabezan la Secretaría de Transporte, la Secretaría de Asistencia Social y la Dirección General de Operaciones Administrativas del Estado de Jalisco, aseguró la secretaria general del Ayuntamiento, Lilia Alvarado Macías.

Protección Civil y Bomberos de Chapala atendieron la emergencia el pasado seis de febrero.  

Redacción. – Un hombre de la población de San Juan Tecomatlán, municipio de Poncitlán fue rescatado del suicidio por personal de Protección Civil y Bomberos de Chapala cuando éste pretendía saltar del puente peatonal que se ubica sobre la carretera Chapala – Guadalajara, al ingreso de la cabecera municipal.

El masculino de quien no se tiene mayor referencia, fue bajado del puente del que pretendía saltar por el personal de Protección Civil, luego de que lograran disuadirlo utilizando los primeros auxilios psicológicos de emergencia. 

La persona rescatada quedó al cuidado de su madre cuando terminó la emergencia, durante la tarde del domingo seis de febrero.

The red SUV damaged in the accident.

A head-on collision occurred in Ajijic on the Chapala-Jocotepec highway, between Rio Bravo and Seis Esquinas, in the area of the speed bumps. A red Audi SUV and a white Dodge pickup were involved in the accident. According to reports, the driver of the white pickup left the scene of the accident.

The white pickup that allegedly caused the collision

The accident was attended by traffic police, while traffic was held up due to the accident.

Translated by Christalle Dalsted

Facade of Chapala’s City Hall. Photo: Mr. Arturo Ortega.

Editor. – The Institute of Transparency and Public Information and Protection of Personal Data of the State of Jalisco (ITEI) ordered the Municipality of Chapala to publish in its internet portal biographical information on officials and information on administrative penalties.

During the Third Ordinary Session, the Plenary of the Council of the ITEI required the City Council to publish the information as required by Article 8, point 1, section V in accordance with file 514/2021 of the transparency appeal.

Since “no data was located in the reference section” of the Municipal Government’s website, the information must be published or updated in the next 15 days.  If the information does not exist, the provisions of the transparency law must be followed.

The ITEI Board determined that the Municipality had already fulfilled the requests for payroll, vehicle fleet and internal regulation (information in files 2796/2021, 526/2021, 3316/2021 and 979/2021).

In November 2021, the ITEI fined Víctor Merino de Jesús, the head of the Transparency Unit of Chapala during the 2018 – 2021 administration, for not delivering complete information regarding internal regulations, the Municipal Development Plan 2018 -2021 and the Social Prevention of the municipality. 

Translated by Elisabeth Shields

Truck of the state prosecutor’s office of the state of Jalisco. Illustrative picture 

Juan Gabriel «N» was arrested in San Nicolás de Ibarra on charges of domestic violence and aggravated injury. The arrest was made by members of the Jalisco District Attorney’s Office.

The man was captured when he was on Francisco I. Madero Street and Obregón Street in the town of San Nicolás de Ibarra, in Chapala. The arrest is related to events that were reported to the Prosecutor’s Office in 2021.

Translated by Kerry Watson