MLA Spokesperson Differ with GoB on Maya Land Tenure Policy

Last week, after the Cabinet meeting, the government announced in a press release that it is making headway with the Draft Maya Customary Land Tenure Policy. They mentioned making suggestions to refine the key points and asked the relevant parties to share this information to move towards finalizing the draft legislation. However, Cristina Coc, spokesperson for the Maya Leaders Alliance and the Toledo Alcalde’s Association, stated that both organizations do not support the government’s proposal. Coc also expressed disappointment over the absence of key government representatives at a working session this week with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which has been involved in the process since 1998.

 

Cristina Coc, Spokesperson, MLA/TAA

“You will recall that recently, we were before the media as well, to denounce the government’s proposal of a one kilometer circular,  um, from the center of the village, a one kilometer, kilometer circular was being proposed that that is what they would automatically recognize and we had an issue with that because that leaves out then all of our farmlands and all the other areas that we customarily use. Um, and so that was, we held, of course, a gathering in Santa Elena shortly after that proposal was made by the government.  And there was a huge protest  against that proposal and the government listened. And basically they said at our meeting with them, I think that was in May, right after the compliance hearing, they basically said, we’re going to pull back that proposal.  We know that it’s not going to, it’s not a popular proposal. It’s not going to be accepted. We’re going to pull it back and we’re going to come back to you with a better proposal. Or one would assume a better proposal. They have now come back with a new proposal and that is perhaps what we should discuss, um, in this interview. Thank you. Because the new proposal now is, uh, is also very, very concerning to the Maya communities. Yesterday, the Inter American Commission visited the village of Santa Cruz. This was the host village. This is where the working session was held.  Unfortunately, the government was a no show insofar as they basically sent three observers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  Um, who informed us that they were only there to take copious notes. And it’s been a pattern where the government has, uh, refused to report and show up for these sessions. This is very disappointing, particularly because the Inter American Commission is in country, is on site. The Attorney General’s Ministry. is the ministry that represents the state in these cases. And so somebody from the attorney general’s ministry at the very minimum there, their counsel on this case. And we have still not arrived at the finalized Maya land tenure policy for three. Sticking issues. One. Um, the big question is where are these Maya lands? Where does Maya customary land tenure exist? Uh, what is the extent of that land? They are now proposing that they will automatically recognize only five acres of land per person.  So whatever the population size is, they will multiply that five acres times that population size. Now again, this is really, um, reflective of either an ignorance on the part of the, of, of the government with respect to understanding Maya customary land tenure, or how Maya people use the land. Or it is, uh, it is just an insistence on limiting the rights of the Maya people and, in fact, limiting specifically the lands that should be recognized for the Maya people. Now, we also reject this, this proposal because  there is no way  just coming and developing this formula. Even the judges of the CCJ asked the government, how did you come up with this formula? How did you determine that, that it would be five acres per person? And they said, well, um, we just decided that that is what is enough, uh, for a Maya person to make their life.  Um, without fully understanding how we use the land, our relationship to the land.”