Entre la montaña y Wirikuta. Defensa del territorio y del patrimonio cultura y natural de los pueblos indígenas

Abstract

This paper addresses the mutually reinforcing relationship between the defense of Indigenous territories against mining processes and the defense of cultures and their daily and ritual manifestations. I will talk about two emblematic cases of the different uses of the demand for cultural recognition in the defense of territory. In the first case, the Wixárika people have claimed the sacred territory of Wirikuta as intangible cultural heritage, thus appealing to national and international institutions for its protection. In the second case, the people of the Montaña region of Guerrero used a strategy based on Land Law and appealed for the right to free, prior and informed consultation, while rejecting institutional projects of territorial protection.