AP
Mexico City, Updated At: 08:50 AM Dec 04, 2025 IST
Dozens of farmers drove tractors to Mexico City and blocked an entrance to the country’s Congress to protest a proposed national water law they say would impose stricter federal controls and reallocate water away from rural areas.
The protesters gathered outside the Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday to oppose the General Water Law proposal, arguing it threatens their livelihoods and undermines the right to water. A banner draped between two tractors read, “If it affects the countryside, it affects the city!”
Jorge Robles, a farmer from Chihuahua, said the protest was against what he called an imposition by the federal government of a reform that risks land ownership. The proposal, backed by President Claudia Sheinbaum and discussed in the Chamber where her Morena party holds a majority, would strengthen penalties for water-related crimes and tighten regulation of water concessions — a sector troubled by corruption scandals.
The tractor demonstration followed a wave of road and highway blockades in at least seven states last week, when farmers and truck drivers also protested insecurity on highways and demanded higher corn and wheat prices. Those blockades were lifted after agreements with the federal government, but agricultural leaders warned they could escalate actions if the water law advances in Congress.
