Birth certificates issued in Yucatán could be written in the Maya language if requested by any citizen.
Juan Collí Pinto, director of the Civil Registry of Yucatán (Registro Civil de Yucatán), said that an initiative to reform the Law of the Civil Registry (Ley del Registro Civil del Estado de Yucatán), which proposes that this document could be issued in this language for those who request it, would be a measure to guarantee access to the identity of people from the state’s native communities.
The official specified that the proposal, which was also worked on by said state entity, indicates that the officials should also express themselves in Mayan in order to make dealing with people more accessible.
“That our records and our services be digitalized in the Mayan language and, in the same way, that we preferably designate Mayan-speaking officials in the areas, so that we can guarantee that when a citizen from these communities comes to the civil registry, we can give them information in a clear way.
The director acknowledged that not all Mayan-speaking people also express it in written form, although the intention is to offer them a service that will be available to citizens who wish to have this document expressed in this way.
It was informed that, in the event that the initiative is approved in the State Congress, it would only apply to the writing of the birth certificate, since the names and surnames will be in Spanish.
Likewise, he emphasized that the measure includes that the Civil Registry (Registro Civil) officials also be Mayan-speaking for better communication with citizens and even officiate marriages in this language.
“What we are going to do is that, at the time of marriage, our ceremony can also be in the Mayan language, not for a tourist or cultural issue, but because the person understands what is happening in the process. We are making this type of service available to anyone who needs it,” he said.
The initiative was turned to the Commission of Constitutional Points and Governance of the State Legislative (Comisión de Puntos Constitucionales y Gobernación del Legislativo Estatal), which will analyze its content and approve it, if necessary.
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