• In an arbitrary and colluded way with an individual, Daniel Cohen Sabban, dismantles and strips Gloria Johnson, owner of Shambhala, of a property of more than thousand meters, denounces the aggrieved
Patricia Pacheco
Zipolite is a beach that has acquired great value due to its development and international fame.
ZIPOLITE, POCHUTLA. - By means of tricks, abuse of trust, alleged falsification of signatures and omission of community representatives; An individual allied with a group of Argentine businessmen, intend to divest Gloria Johnson Ramirez, a woman of advanced age and founder of Zipolite Beach, a property located in an area of great value within the mythical nudist beach.
Backed in an apocryphal document with which it guarantees a supposed assignment of rights of a property of little more than thousand meters property of Johnson Ramírez; Juan Martínez Ramírez, a former collaborator of the victim's trust, illegally sold the land to businessman Daniel Cohen Sabban.
Dismantle hut and property
The land has been coveted by a group of entrepreneurs who owned the hotel Alquimista, for at least 10 years.
Who is presumed as the current owner of the land and who is also a partner of Marcelo Barras Larrarte and Juan Carlos Malazzo Muti, of Argentine origin, in the prolific hotel and restaurant business called El Alquimista - located on the side of the property in dispute; Sent a group of people Tuesday to dismantle a hut located in the place, without a document that would support their actions and without giving the woman the opportunity to defend herself or to present some type of complaint.
Desperate, Gloria, who owns the rustic Shambhala guesthouse on the hillside, explained that everything stems from the abuse of trust of her former worker Juan Martinez, who after serving as her "right hand" for more than 20 years , Took advantage of the fact that she had specially commissioned the care of the property, since since 2007 it has been coveted by the owners of El Alquimista.
Trust abuse
Gloria Johnson denounced that a cabin of his property was dismantled today by envoys of the businessman Daniel Cohen Sabban.
"I made a deal with him (Juan Martínez) through a letter and some witnesses, which was not a cession, to take care of the land because I needed to defend it because there I have my biodigestores, tank and other things, he I had to protect it so that my neighbors, who had previously tried to appropriate it - with the complicity of the communal representatives of that time - would not achieve it, "he said.
The 76-year-old woman, who is no longer able to move easily because of her age, regretted that instead of looking after the property, her unconditional ex-wife sold her illegally by falsifying her signature and documents, For several million pesos to the businessman, allegedly of foreign origin.
Property in litigation
The disputed property of more than one thousand meters is located in the north end of the beach Zipolite, in one of the zones with greater economic value.
After noting that he is already taking action in the legal and agrarian field to recover his property, he detailed that the property that is now coveted by the group of entrepreneurs is in an agrarian litigation because in 2012 another former employee named Juan Flores Ramirez tried to keep that and other portions of his land.
"Although the Agrarian Unitary Court has already given me reason about the legitimate possession of my land, the litigation is still ongoing, and in such a case, it is impossible that I can sell that property," he said.
Doubtful performance of communal assets
Since the property regime in Pochutla is communal, and the land is therefore non-transferable, sales between individuals are unusual. It is therefore necessary that when assignments of rights are made by land, the Commissariat of Communal Property is the one who issues the new acts of possession.
In this case, the role of the current communal organ of Pochutla, led by Eutiquio Ricardez, was at least suspect, who issued with ease and without a request through Gloria Johnson, the document of possession in the name of businessman Daniel Cohen.
"They tell me that they could not know that the signature they presented to them as mine in the document for sale was false. I am a recognized community member, I lived in Zipolite for 45 years and my husband was the owner of all these lands, "he said.
According to locals, the group of entrepreneurs who own the Alquimista, have also acquired several properties on the beach, with great value, not only in Zipolite but also in Mazunte.
Part of the Zipolite Story
It should be noted that Gloria Johnson is part of the history of Zipolite. Daughter of American mother and Mexican father, arrived at the zone from very young and contracted marriage with a local one. Since then he has witnessed the growth, the passage of hundreds of characters and fame of the now recognized world-famous beach nudist.
For over 30 years he founded Shambhala, "a rustic and ecological natural refuge located on a slope of the Pacific Coast of Oaxaca" as described on its website. The place is visited by hundreds of tourists every year for being considered a place of ritual, full of energy in harmony with nature.
Gloria Johnson is one of the founders of Zipolite and the rustic hostel Shambhala.
