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STORY: GUATEMALA / INDIGENOUS PEOPLES RIGHTS
DUR: 1:41
SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTION: PLEASE CREDIT OHCHR ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 10 MAY 2018, GUATEMALA
1. Various still shots, Victoria at event
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples:
“They do not have any security to their land. Their land rights are not really insured. So they are always under threat of losing their lands because of agribusiness plantations or hydroelectric dam infrastructure building as well as mining operations. So they are much concerned about the fact that the rights for their lands, territories and resources are not protected.”
3. Still shot, picture of indigenous peoples in Guatemala
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples:
“And I have also spoken with women and the wives of those that have been incarcerated, who were complaining about the fact that they don’t have any means to send their children to school nor to produce food for their own children. So it is a very sad situation actually, that those who are protesting and trying to protect their lands and territories are the ones who are being criminalized.”
5. Still shot, picture of Victoria with indigenous women
The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz expressed concern over the discrimination and marginalisation of indigenous peoples in Guatemala, referring to extreme poverty, malnutrition, forced evictions and criminal prosecutions.
At the end of a 10-day visit to the country, the UN human rights expert urged the Government to reconstruct its relationship with indigenous peoples. Tauli-Corpuz also called on the Government to ensure accountability and reparations with respect to Guatemala’s civil war from 1960 to 1996.
Tauli-Corpuz noted that the number of people living in poverty in Guatemala has increased 22 per cent in the last 10 years. Around 40 per cent of indigenous peoples live in extreme poverty and more than half of all indigenous children are malnourished.
She was extremely concerned over the increasing inequalities in the country and over the failure of the Government to address structural discrimination and allocate funds to address the grave situation of indigenous peoples.”
The Special Rapporteur also noted that the escalating incidence of forced evictions and the abuse of criminal proceedings against indigenous peoples who seek to defend their lands were repeatedly raised as key concerns in the various regions that she visited.
She said that she met numerous indigenous peoples who had been forcibly evicted without the provision of any humanitarian assistance.
SOUNDBITE (English) Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples:
“They do not have any security to their land. Their land rights are not really insured. So they are always under threat of losing their lands because of agribusiness plantations or hydroelectric dam infrastructure building as well as mining operations. So they are much concerned about the fact that the rights for their lands, territories and resources are not protected.”
During her trip, Tauli-Corpuz also visited several indigenous leaders in prison who have been charged with criminal offences which appear to be inflated and who have been subjected to lengthy pre-trial detention.
She reiterated that the root cause of the situation is land tenure insecurity. Guatemala has not adopted legislation nor a mechanism for the adjudication of the rights of indigenous peoples to lands, territories and natural resources. Many are left in a situation of total vulnerability in the face of competing interests and numerous projects that are carried out without consultations or the consent of the peoples concerned.
She also warned that the criminalisation of indigenous leaders who seek specific and legal solutions to land disputes will only increase tensions in society.
She said that it is necessary that Guatemala identifies, confronts and starts to work towards the resolution of these structural problems.
SOUNDBITE (English) Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples:
“And I have also spoken with women and the wives of those that have been incarcerated, who were complaining about the fact that they don’t have any means to send their children to school nor to produce food for their own children. So it is a very sad situation actually, that those who are protesting and trying to protect their lands and territories are the ones who are being criminalized.”
Tauli-Corpuz held meetings in Guatemala City, San Marcos, Chiquimula, Alta Verapaz and Santa Rosa. Some 10’000 indigenous peoples attended the meetings with the Special Rapporteur.
