The cultural context of biodiversity conservation - Oapen

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The cultural context of biodiversity conservation
nomic, social and cultural rights of the Maya, Garífuna and Xinca peoples, within the
unity of the Guatemalan Nation and subject to the indivisibility of the territory of the
Guatemalan State, as components of that unity« (MINUGUA 2001: 6). The AIDPI resolved
that the indigenous languages become official languages, that the different
forms of spirituality practiced by the indigenous population be respected and that
measures be taken to prevent discrimination against the use of indigenous dress. A series
of further commitments was given to orient public policy, taking into account the
recognition of indigenous systems of authorities and customary law. It was stressed
that the state had to ensure and institutionalise the participation of indigenous peoples
in all political, economic, social and cultural spheres. 15 This included an educational
reform, which must reflect cultural and linguistic diversity, granting the incorporation
of indigenous concepts in the definition of the curricula.
Officially, the constitutional legislation recognises the existence of indigenous
groups and the right to their cultural identity in accordance with their traditional ways
of life, languages, values, customs and forms of social organisation. But despite being
established in official law, the rights of the indigenous peoples need to be distinguished
between de jure and de facto. The ambiguity between legally established and actually
granted rights is evident in various fields. One of the fundamental problems affecting
the indigenous peoples in Guatemala relates to land tenure. The lack of access
to land and problems stemming from the loss of land due to the armed conflict, created
a situation of rising social tension. Agricultural resources are still distributed unequally,
with cultivable land highly concentrated in a few large estates. 16 The so-called
latifundios include the most fertile land of the country, being generally situated in areas
of volcanic soil. In contrast, indigenous farmers hold small plots situated in the highlands
or in ecologically extremely difficult karstic regions of the Petén and the Verapaz
area. While their land is subject to erosion due to excessive cultivation, the fertile
lands best suited for agriculture are reserved for extensive use and for cattle ranching
(Amry 1999: 78). During the more than three decades of armed conflict, the fragmentation
of peasant plots into minifundios increased, leading to growing conflicts, largely
due to the displacement and resettlement of the indigenous population and the misappropriation
of communal land. 17 This has been reported to be particularly acute in
15 In compliance with the AIDPI, Guatemala also ratified the ILO-Convention 169 concerning indigenous
and tribal peoples in independent countries, which recognises indigenous rights to the use,
ownership, management and control of traditional lands and territories. For further details on the
implementation of the provisions of the peace accords, consider Indigenous Peoples, Customary Law and
the Peace-Process in Guatemala by Amry (1999).
16 The country has the most unequal land tenure in Latin America, with approximately 2 percent of
the landowners controlling 80 percent of the farmland. This exclusionary agrarian structure reinforced
seasonally labour migration towards large fincas and coastal plantations and more recently
even to the United States. In the 1960s the government introduced low cost chemical fertilisers into
highland milpa agriculture as part of the Green Revolution in lieu of an agrarian reform (Green 2003).
17 Farms smaller than 10 manzanas (7 ha) are commonly referred to as minifundios (Katz 2000: 122).
According to Berger (1997: 100), the average size of smallholdings declined from 1.7 to 0.79 ha over
the last 30 years and the unequal land concentration leaves 27 percent of the population landless.
For further information on the issue of land conflicts in this area, consider Milián et al. (2002).