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Mexico's Supreme Court Holds First Plenary Outside Capital, Weighs Tsotsil Autonomy Case

Ministers used the Chiapas session to debate a draft that would require state legislation on indigenous autonomy, stopping short of creating a new tier of government.

Overview

  • The Pleno met in a public plaza in Tenejapa, Chiapas, marking its first session outside Mexico City since 1917, with Tzotzil interpretation and ministers appearing without robes in traditional attire under President Hugo Aguilar.
  • At issue is Amparo 344/2025 from the tsotsil community of La Candelaria seeking formal recognition of its self-government as a subject of public law under Article 2 of the Constitution.
  • Minister Loretta Ortiz’s draft declares a legislative omission by the Congress of Chiapas and orders a regulatory framework for indigenous self-government, explicitly stating this does not create a “fourth level” of government.
  • The project links Chiapas’s obligations to a forthcoming federal general law and contemplates a 180‑day period for the state legislature to act once that law takes effect.
  • The agenda also featured a controversy over Hidalgo’s charrería heritage designation, with a draft affirming the state’s competence, and an amparo from the rarámuri community of Tehuerichi proposing recognition of its traditional government and validation of community-issued documents.