The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) has approved a review of the legal status of Melipona bees in Hopelchén, Campeche, and the Ring of Cenotes Geohydrological Reserve in Yucatán. This would allow Indigenous communities to take legal action against pollution from the pig farming industry and protect pollinators from the massive use of pesticides.
By majority vote, the Court approved the following requests for its jurisdiction: 223/2026, regarding the legal status of the Ring of Cenotes Geohydrological Reserve; 224/2026, regarding the installation and operation of a mega-pig farm within the Ring of Cenotes protected natural area; and 225/2026, regarding Indigenous communities seeking recognition of bees as a species with which they have a historical relationship.
“This case raises several questions about how to define the right to a healthy environment, how to study the ancestral relationship of the Mayan community with bees, and whether Indigenous communities can be guardians of nature and, therefore, appear in court on their own behalf,” said Justice Irving Espinosa Betanzo.
The Mayan communities of Homún, Yucatán, and Hopelchén, Campeche, who proposed the cases that were later taken up by Justices Hugo Aguilar and Espinosa Betanzo, celebrated the decision, which they considered unprecedented.
However, the Indigenous communities criticized Justice Estela Ríos, former presidential advisor to Andrés Manuel López Obrador, for voting against them in all three cases.
Source: suracapulco
