Congresswoman Fabiola Loeza Novelo proposed, this November 16, an initiative to declare Traditional Yucatecan Midwifery as Intangible Cultural Heritage of the State, looking that this would contribute to the recognition of this work in order to preserve it.
From the legislator’s point of view, this work is important because it not only includes the reception of babies, but also the follow-up of pregnancy and post-pregnancy care, so declaring it as such would contribute to its recognition and preservation with an integral approach to belonging.
In the cities, she pointed out, the follow-up of pregnancy stages usually takes place through public or private consultation; however, in the interior of the state, such reviews are with the women of the Mayan community.
“These women are heirs to an ancestral culture linked to the traditional roots of childbirth,” she said.
Traditional Yucatecan midwifery, she sensitized, “symbolizes an emotional link between women and the original roots of the Mayab,” who have received a gift from generation to generation and have an apprenticeship in favor of women and infants.
“They are also guarantors of access to timely health care, care, and protection. These midwives are not only present when the baby is born, but also during the entire gestation period; they are in charge of giving massages, check-ups, and specific instructions to the expectant mothers and fathers on the best way to take care of the pregnancy, she explained.
Until three years ago, she explained, there were more than 180 midwives in Yucatán, as she has been informed by local Maya indigenous women; “but I am sure that in 2022 there will be many more” and she considers that they should be recognized, as well as trained.
“The importance of traditional midwifery is so great that every year more than 17,000 births are attended by rural midwives, babies who not only receive but also accompany, because together with the mothers and fathers, they attend the consultations with empathy and good disposition”, Fabiola Loeza Novelo concluded.
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