Ejido - History and Rationale

History and Rationale

The encomienda system was abolished by the Constitution of 1917, with the promise of restoring the ejido system. The system was reinitiated after the Mexican Revolution in some states, notably Morelos but the repartition of land in most of Mexico did not begin until Lázaro Cárdenas became president in 1934. The ejido system was introduced as an important component of the land reform program. The typical procedure for the establishment of an ejido involved the following steps:

1. landless farmers who leased lands from wealthy landlords would petition the federal government for the creation of an ejido in their general area;
2. the federal government would consult with the landlord;
3. the land would be expropriated from the landlords if the government approved the ejido; and
4. an ejido would be established and the original petitioners would be designated as ejidatarios with certain cultivation/use rights.

Ejidatarios did not actually own the land, but were allowed to use their alloted parcels indefinitely as long as they did not fail to use the land for more than two years. They could even pass their rights on to their children.