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Indigenous Minority Rights – 2001

The provisions in the Agreements for indigenous communities to own and manage their land were still not honored. While indigenous practices traditionally worked well for the sustainable use of natural resources, the Government’s backward and ineffective rural development policies undermined both indigenous rights and a sustainable ecology.¹

By September 2001, only the Ministry of Education had recognized the right of indigenous persons to wear their traditional attire. However, the Ministry of Education had so far failed to implement comprehensive intercultural and bilingual education programs or improve indigenous communities’ access to education at the levels stipulated by the agreements. Furthermore, the judicial system had largely failed to adapt to guarantee equal access and equal rights for indigenous persons, and the provisions in the agreement to facilitate indigenous communities’ access to communications media had not been implemented either.²

1. “United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala: Report of the Secretary-General,” United Nations General Assembly (A/55/973), June 1, 2001.
2. “The Indigenous Peoples of Guatemala: Overcoming Discrimination in the Framework of the Peace Agreements, Verification Report,” United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA), September 2001.