Community Ethics as a Possibility to Develop Direct-Council Democracy, Plurality and Ecological Awareness in Rural and Indigenous Communities in Mexico

Abstract

This article analyzes how in some examples of rural indigenous communities in the south of Mexico a way of life based on community Ethics is carried out, a type of Ethics that with the practice of collective values such as mutual support, solidarity, respect, inclusion, community and cooperative work. From this collective vision of life derives practices such as direct council’s democracy, which is developed by distributing power and political responsibility among the different members of the community in this way it and the collective council are the highest authority. The councils are formed by members of the community with rotating positions. At the same time, the direct participation of the inhabitants of the community has a direct impact on decision making. This political participation allows not only the exercise of direct council democracy but also a mechanism of inclusion and the intention of respect for Plurality, since the different members of the community can participate in the council or have a responsibility in the committee, this without gender restrictions since the participation of women is very important in certain examples and in other cases the participation of a third gender is also included; thus exercising through community Ethics the respect for the other, as well as the recognition of the difference, identity and plurality. The construction of an ecological awareness through the care and defense of the environment is also developed from the practice of community ethics, because if we think in community we have to opt for the welfare of all, which implies taking care of natural resources in a responsible manner for collective subsistence, in addition to respect for plurality and beliefs that relate to nature as a cultural and religious issue that is part of the identity of the community. Thinking that allows the development of practices for the care of the environment.