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Take Action!
99% of the crimes committed during Guatemala's war have not been brought to justice. | |||||||||
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Did You Know?
> 2011 was the most violent year for human rights defenders in Guatemala since the end of the civil war. NISGUA's teams of on-the-ground international human rights monitors work to deter violence in communities, courtrooms and at public events. > Former dictator Efrain Rios Montt, who ruled during the bloodiest period of the war, is awaiting trial for genocide and crimes against humanity. > The Xalalá hydro-electric dam was rejected by 89% of participants in a local referendum because it could displace thousands of indigenous people and damage farmlands and forests. > Almost 400 mining concessions have been granted to transnational gold, silver, nickel, and zinc companies in Guatemala, posing severe threats to rural communities' social and environmental well-being. | |||||||||
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Land Rights and Agrarian Reform
Land distribution is one of the most overt signs of social and economic inequality that exists in Guatemala. Guatemala's rural poor strive for socially equitable agrarian reforms which will raise the standard of living for those who have been marginalized without a source of income. There has been no attempt at land redistribution since the early 1950's keeping Guatemala one of the most inequitable countries in the Americas.
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Introduction
In Guatemala, the concentration of land is among the highest in the world. More than one million families, representing 96% of agriculture producers in Guatemala, cultivate only a fifth of the agricultural land in the country. On the other extreme, 2,000 producers (.15%) exploit 70% of the agricultural land. Ongoing conflicts in the countryside can be traced to the fact that the vast majority of the rural population lacks access to sufficient productive resources to be able to sustain themselves. The majority of the victims of this unjust situation are indigenous people whose ancestors were displaced from their traditional lands.
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News, Land Reports and Analysis
Learn about land distribution, inequalities, and the problems that face the agrarian populations of Guatemala.
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Background and Links
Learn more about land rights and reform in Guatemala as well as some useful background information on other organizations working towards these goals.
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