The Congress of San Luis Potosí enacted the State Law on Linguistic Rights, which seeks to recognize, protect, and preserve the individual and collective linguistic rights of Indigenous peoples and communities.
The legislation, promoted by Representative Brisseire Sánchez López, recognizes the right of Indigenous people to communicate in their native language, orally or in writing, in both public and private spaces and in social, economic, political, cultural, and religious activities.
Among its provisions, the law establishes that Indigenous people who are parties to trials or legal proceedings must have the support of translators throughout all stages of the process.
The law also provides that basic education in territories with Indigenous populations must have a bilingual and intercultural approach. To achieve this, the State Government’s Secretariat of Education, through the Directorate of Indigenous Education, must coordinate with the corresponding institute and municipal education authorities.
According to data cited in the statement of legislative intent, the 2020 Population and Housing Census conducted by INEGI recorded 231,213 people aged three and older who spoke an Indigenous language in San Luis Potosí, equivalent to 8.6 percent of that population.
With this proportion, San Luis Potosí ranked ninth nationwide. Oaxaca topped the list with 31.2 percent, followed by Chiapas with 28.2 percent and Yucatán with 23.7 percent.
The representative stated that the new legislation seeks to promote the everyday use and development of Indigenous languages, as well as guarantee their transmission and preservation within communities.
Source: sanluispotosi.quadratin
