Guatemala is home to 24 principal ethnic groups. Although the Government of Guatemala has adopted the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the country’s indigenous peoples continue to face a number of challenges.
Guatemala is home to 24 ethnic groups. Although the Government of Guatemala has adopted the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the country’s Indigenous Peoples continue to face a number of challenges, especially in terms of political participation, health, employment, income, housing, and education.
Indigenous Peoples in Guatemala
Guatemala has a population of 14.9 million people, of which 6.5 million (43.75%) belong to the 22 Mayan (Achi’, Akatec, Awakatec, Chalchitec, Ch’ortí, Chuj, Itzá, Ixil, Jacaltec, Kaq- chikel, K’iche, Mam, Mopan, Poqomam, Poqomchí, Q’anjob’al, Q’eqchí, Sakapultec, Sipakapense, Tektitek, Tz’utujil and Us- pantek), one Garífuna, one Xinca and one Creole or Afro-descendant peoples.
The country still lacks a differentiated statistical base on Indigenous Peoples, especially on Indigenous women, but it is well-known that there are disparities between the Indigenous and the non-indigenous population in employment, income, health, and education.
Statistics clearly demonstrate persistent racism and discrimination against Indigenous Peoples. Despite representing more than half of the population and participating actively in the country’s economy, their political participation is not equitably reflected.
Main challenges for Guatemala’s Indigenous Peoples
One of the main struggles for Indigenous Peoples in Guatemala relates to political participation. The electoral system is defined by exclusion of Indigenous Peoples, and they primarily participate as voters, rather than as candidates with true possibilities of being elected.
With respect to health, employment, income, housing, and education, there is a great disparity between Indigenous Peoples and the rest of the population. Official data indicates that poverty affects 75% of Indigenous people and 36% of non-indigenous people; chronic malnutrition affects 58% of Indigenous people and 38% of non-indigenous people; and, in terms of political participation, Indigenous individuals represent no more than 15% of parliamentarians and high-ranking public officials.
Another challenge for Guatemala’s Indigenous Peoples relates to the absence of a water act. The use, management, and conservation of water are not officially regulated, and several private companies take advantage of this by not paying for their water usage, nor contributing to water conservation, and without assuming any responsibility for pollution caused by discharges of waste. The majority of groundwater recharge areas are located within Indigenous territories, and the affected Indigenous Peoples do not receive any support from the state or from water users to protect the aquifers. Several communities have demanded that the state commence a broad discussion to draft a water act, but they have yet to be met.
After provisionally protected the communities of the Q’eqchi people by opposing the construction of two internationally funded hydroelectric projects in their territory, the Constitutional Court eventually issued a final judgment that approves the continuation of the projects and forces the Government to formulate and approve a regulation to standardise the holding of community consultations. Indigenous and social organizations expressed their opposition. This ruling violates the rights of Indigenous Peoples, ILO Convention 169 and the laws of the country itself because community consultations do not require any regulation and must be carried out according to the mechanisms of the Indigenous Peoples.
Potential progress for Guatemala’s Indigenous Peoples
In 2016, 34 years after committing the crimes, a group of army officers were sentenced to 120 and 240 years of imprisonment for raping15 Maya Q’eqchi women and force them into sexual slavery. The case sets a precedent worldwide since it is the first time a crime of sexual abuse during an armed conflict has gone under trial in the same country where it was committed. However, other cases of crimes committed by the military against the indigenous population during the armed internal conflict remain in impunity.
Guatemala’s projected population was 17.6 million for 2023,[1] of which 43.75% belong to the Mayan (Achi', Akateco, Awakateco, Chalchiteco, Ch'orti', Chuj, Itza', Ixil, Jacalteco, Kaqchikel, K'iche', Mam, Mopan, Poqomam, Poqomchi', Q'anjob'al, Q'eqchi', Sakapulteco, Sipakapense, Tektiteko, Tz'utujil and Uspanteko), Garifuna, Xinka and Creole or Afrodescendant peoples.
Indigenous people continue to lag behind Guatemalan society as a whole in terms of health, education, employment and income, a situation that is even worse for Indigenous women. This is because structural racism lies at the root of their inequality and social exclusion, as well as the violations of their fundamental rights.
Narratives and actions against Indigenous Peoples are still present in this Central American country. The Guatemalan government uses assimilation policies, decreases the budget of human rights organizations, does not comply with prior consultation, and does not respect lands rights. At the same time, the state of siege is a recurrent method to repress social protests, the so-called “pact of the corrupt” gets more and more impunity, and racism consolidates in the form of economic inequity and political marginalization.
Racism and patriarchy present profound challenges within the Guatemalan prison system. The penal system is a reflection of the discrimination experienced by Indigenous women all over: for being women, Indigenous and poor. In the face of this adversity, the Colectivo Artesana promotes public policies that protect the human rights of Indigenous female prisoners. False accusations, planted evidence, fraudulent use of bank accounts and the absence of translation services during the legal process are among the many recurring irregularities.
Guatemala has a population of 14.9 million inhabitants, of which 6.5 million (43.75%) belong to the Mayan peoples (Achi', Akateco, Awakateco, Chalchiteco, Ch'orti', Chuj, Itza', Ixil, Jacalteco, Kaqchikel, K'iche', Mam, Mopan, Poqomam, Poqomchi', Q'anjob'al, Q'eqchi', Sakapulteco, Sipakapense, Tektiteko, Tz'utujil and Uspanteko), as well as the Garifuna, Xinka and Creole or Afro-descendant peoples.
Guatemala has a population of 14.9 million inhabitants, of which 6.5 million (43.75%) belong to one of the 22 Maya peoples (Achi', Akateco, Awakateco, Chalchiteco, Ch'orti', Chuj, Itza', Ixil, Jacalteco, Kaqchikel, K'iche', Mam, Mopan, Poqomam, Poqomchi', Q'anjob'al, Q'eqchi', Sakapulteco, Sipakapense, Tektiteko, Tz'utujil and Uspanteko), or to the Garifuna, Xinca and Creole or Afrodescendant peoples.
Guatemala has a population of 14.9 million people, of which 6.5 million (43.75%) belong to the 22 Mayan (Achi’, Akatec, Awakatec, Chalchitec, Ch’ortí, Chuj, Itzá, Ixil, Jacaltec, Kaqchikel, K’iche, Mam, Mopan, Poqomam, Poqomchí, Q’anjob’al, Q'eqchí, Sakapultec, Sipakapense, Tektitek, Tz’utujil and Uspantek), one Garífuna, one Xinca and one Creole or Afro-descendant peoples.
Indigenous people continue to lag behind Guatemalan society as a whole in terms of health, education, employment and income, a situation that is worse for Indigenous women. This is because structural racism lies at the root of the inequality and social exclusion, as well as of the violations of the fundamental rights, of Indigenous Peoples. Although the Political Constitution of the Republic of Guatemala recognises the existence of Indigenous Peoples and calls itself a multicultural society, and despite the fact that the country has ratified international agreements on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, in practice, the social, economic and political gap between the Indigenous and non-indigenous population is a wide one. For example: the state invests USD 0.4 per day in each Indigenous person and USD 0.9 per day in each non-indigenous person;[1] poverty affects 75% of Indigenous people and 36% of non-indigenous people;[2] chronic malnutrition affects 58% of Indigenous people and 38% of non-indigenous people;[3] and, in terms of political participation, Indigenous individuals represent no more than 15% of parliamentarians and high-ranking public officials.
IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs - is a global human rights organisation dedicated to promoting and defending Indigenous Peoples’ rights. Read more.
