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Comunidad indígena Nahua de Santa María Ostula
The Nahua indigenous community of Santa María Ostula is an indigenous group comprised of twenty-four communities located in the coastal highlands region of the State of Michoacán. Throughout its history, they worked for the defence of the autonomy and self-determination of the Nahua peoples, including the recovery of their territory, which has been affected by invasions and dispossessions by organized crime groups. Thanks to this defence work, in 2009, the indigenous group achieved the recovery of an estimated 1250 hectares of land, which is now known as San Diego Xayakalán.
Due to their work in defence of their collective human rights, the Nahua indigenous community of Santa María Ostula has faced attacks, threats, disappearances and killings by criminal groups. In response, they have strengthened their internal legal systems, engaging the community in the participation and protection of the land. In this way, the community exercises their right to self-determination, as well as reassures their cultural identity and roots to their land.