Privatizing Sacred Spaces: How a New Guatemalan Law Threatens the Mayan Nation

Templo II, Tikal, Petén Department, Guatemala (Photo: Jimmy Baum/Upsplash)

In early May, the Congress of the Republic of Guatemala introduced the first reading of Initiative 5923 or, the “Law for the Rescue of Pre-Hispanic Heritage” (Ley para el Rescate del Patrimonio Prehispánico). Despite the bill’s ambiguously progressive-sounding title, the reading was met with disappointment, outrage, and alarm from the many Indigenous Mayan peoples of Guatemala and their allies from around the world. On May 11, over 200 Indigenous leaders marched to the Congress building to deliver a signed letter expressing their opposition to the bill and demanding its withdrawal.

Solidarity Between Mayan Communities 

Representatives of several Indigenous councils including the Mayan Council Chilam B’alam of the K’iches, the Mayan Council Komon Ajq’ijab’, the National Coordinator of the Territories of Life Network (Coordinadora Nacional Red Territories de Vida), the National Ajq’ijab’ Council “Oxlajuj Ajpop,” and the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC) released a public statement expressing their concern that the provisions of the bill would “cause the dispossession, privatization, and economic exploitation of two thousand seven hundred and fifty-four (2754) ceremonial centers, sacred sites, and other elements of Mayan spiritual, religious, and cultural heritage.” 

Many of these councils, like the Consejo B'alam Saqb'e, are composed of leaders from several different Mayan communities who collaborate to share their skills and knowledge with Indigenous youth and help their communities reclaim and connect with the “ancestral Mayan identity.” For the Oxlajuj Ajpop, this process involves, among many other things, protecting biodiversity, forests, and water, preserving and continuing sacred practices and spaces, and conflict resolution.

“Rescuing” Indigenous Land 

According to a video released by the Guatemalan Ministry of Culture and Athletics, in addition to the 2754 registered archeological sites, new technology has allowed the “discovery” of more than 5000 “hidden” archeological sites that have yet to be researched or managed by the government. The proposed bill would allocate funds to protecting and “rescuing” these sites; most of which contain centuries of Mayan history in the form of archeological artifacts, and which remain sites of cultural and spiritual reverence for the Indigenous peoples of contemporary Guatemala.

The language employed by the Guatemalan government in regard to this initiative is telling. The aforementioned video claims that the proposed National Technical Council for the Rescue of Pre-Hispanic Heritage will urgently “rescue” the “vestiges” (vestigios) of Mayan civilization. The use of the word “vestiges” implies that these archeological sites present remnants of something that no longer exists, or is at least fading from existence. 

“We are not prehispanic” 

Many councils of Mayan spiritual leaders, however, announce that “we are not prehispanic.” Tat José Baudilio Sis, who is an Ajq’ij and Doctor of Psychology, notes, “the title [of this law] excludes us and makes us invisible.” In Guatemala, the Ajq’ijab' (the plural form of Ajq’ij) are spiritual leaders known as contadores de tiempo, which literally translates to “counters of time.” It is their duty, among many other things, to use and interpret the Mayan calendar as a guide for their respective communities.

Though the Indigenous individuals who built and inhabited these archeological sites lived hundreds of years ago, their descendants continue to thrive and claim ownership to their people’s sacred places despite ongoing, violent erasure. According to the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs, of Guatemala’s population of 14.9 million, 6.5 million people belong to one of 24 ethnic groups; 22 of which are Indigenous Maya. 

Despite Mayan people from pueblos originales (original communities) accounting for 43.6% of the current population, the Guatemalan government has neglected to include input from Mayan leadership in its plan for implementing the Law for the Rescue of Pre-Hispanic Heritage. The proposed technical council would include the General Director of Cultural and Natural Heritage, the Technical Director of the Institute of Anthropology and History, the Technical Director of Research and Registration, the Head of the Department of Archaeological Atlas of Guatemala, the Head of the Department of Conservation and Rescue of Pre-Hispanic Archaeological Sites, and the Head of the Department of Pre-Hispanic Monuments. The council would not include representation from any of the 22 distinct Mayan communities of Guatemala.

The Importance of the Ajq’ijab’ in Protecting the Earth 

As a member of the Ajq’ijab', Tat José Baudilio Sis (tat meaning “father”) represents the Consejo B'alam Saq’B'e, a council that joins with 8 other prominent councils to form the Alianza (alliance) de Ajq’ijab’ Paxil Kalaya. After listening to Tat Baudilio explain the cosmovision and values of the Ajq’ijab’, it became clear that the Guatemalan government doesn’t simply exclude the pueblos originales from legislative decision-making process– it neglects to understand them at all.

The Ajq’ijab’ define themselves as guardians of earth and biodiversity and transmitters of ancestral wisdom for the purpose of Utzalaj K’aslemalil or Buen Vivir. While the phrase Buen Vivir loosely translates to “good living” or “wellbeing,” it is a concept that does not entirely fit within Western definitions of wellbeing, and focuses especially on the health of the earth and equilibrium in nature and “infinite spaces.” 

Tat Baudilio explains that spiritual leaders like him are guardians of life and the earth principally because the earth is the Indigenous communities’ source of survival. Concepción Tot Paau, president and spiritual guide of the Peten region council B'olom sastal, says her organization’s mission is to prepare people in the craft of healing and in-depth study of Popol Hu or Popol Vuh, a sacred mythological text of the K’iche’ people, and that each spiritual guide cares for madre naturaleza, or mother nature, in their respective region.

Dissonance Between Western & Indigenous Practices 

Buen Vivir is a concept shared by many Indigenous communities across Abya Yala (the American continent), and has been the driving force behind many conservation movements. Sumak Kawsay, for example, is a Quechua word which also describes the idea of Buen Vivir and the duty humans have toward Pachamama, or Mother Earth. Sumak Kawsay was actually incorporated into Ecuador’s constitution as well as Bolivia’s laws as a component of “rights of nature” laws which shift focus away from economic development and anthropocentrism, and toward the delicate relationships among all living things.

According to Tat Baudilio, the government of Guatemala neither accurately interprets nor shares Mayan cultural practices. He attributes this in part to ongoing religious fanaticism in Guatemala, where the dominance of Christianity has propagated prejudices and misconceptions about Mayan spirituality and practices. Institutions like the Church and Western ideas about spirituality, environmentalism, and education are products of settler colonialism, and are not necessarily compatible with Indigenous knowledge systems or ways of being. 

Though Initiative 5923 contains language about acknowledging and respecting Indigenous ways of life, spiritual practices, traditions, customs, dress, language, and dialects, it projects Western ideas about religion onto Mayan spirituality and the actual function of the Ajq’ijab’. According to Tat Baudilio, the law’s perception of “traditions and customs'' has nothing to do with Mayan notions of ancestrality. The commitment of the Ajq’ijab’ to preserving biodiversity and healing the earth gets lost in translation; both literally and figuratively. As he puts it, “we know the law but it doesn’t serve us.” 

This is why, even though Guatemala has existing laws regarding the rights of Indigenous peoples such as the 1996 UN Agreement on a Firm and Lasting Peace and 2008’s Law 3835, “Sacred Places of the Indigenous Communities,” institutions such as the education system, healthcare system, the justice system, and the economy fail to equitably include and represent Mayan practices and cosmologies. Tat Baudilio believes that the education system participates in the historic erasure of original communities, as does the lucrative tourism industry in its depictions of Guatemalan history and culture. 

The Impacts of Capitalism 

It comes as no surprise, then, that one of the justifications for “rescuing” pre-hispanic heritage outlined in Article 12 of Initiative 5923 explains the social and economic value that derives from improving culture and heritage, and therefore improving quality of life. The problem is that the living descendents of pueblos originales will likely never see the economic benefits that the government expects and uses as cause to deem this initiative “urgent.”

Additionally, institutions responsible for healthcare such as the United Nations in Guatemala have continually failed to acknowledge practices and ideas of health that are specific to the Maya, especially when implementing emergency planning at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Neither is the Guatemalan justice system compatible with Indigenous understandings of Utzalaj K’aslemalil or Buen Vivir. Indigenous people face high rates of incarceration by a prison system that, as of 2021, was 300% overcrowded. Furthermore, 75% of the Indigenous population in Guatemala is affected by poverty, with 21.8% living in extreme poverty.

A Long History of Colonial Violence 

The harmful disjunctures between Mayan cosmovisions and ways of life and the dominant perceptions of their culture are enduring ones. For many Ajq’ijab’ and community members who remember the genocidal violence of the Guatemalan Civil War (1960-1996), the law has never been equivalent with their understanding of justice. According to the Center for Justice and Accountability, Over 200,000 Guatemalans disappeared or were killed during the war, and a staggering 83% of those victims were Indigenous Maya. Nearly all of these murders were carried out or supported by members of the Guatemalan military or government. 

Tat Baudilio shared several heartbreaking instances of this sort of violence, such as the rape, torture, and murders of 177 women and children on March 13, 1982 in Pak’oxom, Río Negro, or the burning alive of 300 men, women, and children the very next day in Cuarto Pueblo, Ixkan. This is where the “religious fanaticism” and deeply rooted Christianity of the country takes its darkest, most colonial form. Prior to and during the war, Ajq’ijab’ were often burned alive after having been accused of being brujos, or witches based on their non-Christian spiritual practices.

Global Reverberations

It is important and sobering to remember that these atrocities live in the not-so-distant past. Despite the aforementioned peace accords and long-awaited convictions of several military generals, decades later the Indigenous communities of Guatemala still face mounting injustices which include and extend beyond laws like the Law for the Rescue of Pre-Hispanic Heritage. Neither are these settler colonial projects particular to Central America. In Canada and the United States, for example, legislative projects which rob Indigenous communities of their land and practices began when the continent was first colonized and have not ceased. 

Recent cases include the Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) Nation’s movement to challenge McGill University’s decision to expand two buildings onto unceded Mohawk territory where the unmarked graves of Indigenous children murdered during the CIA’s infamous MK-Ultra psychological experiments allegedly lie. The United States saw a recent movement to protect Peehee mu’huh (Thacker Pass) in Nevada after Lithium Nevada proposed the construction of a new lithium mine. Reno-Sparks Indian Colony and tribal members from the Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in which they expressed their desire to preserve the land on which they regularly practice ceremonies and hunt and gather.

Why do Mayan communities reject Initiative 5923?

The centuries-long project to privatize Indigenous land has become normalized. That is why, in Guatemala, urgent action is needed. A recent press release issued by the Ajq’ijab’ Indigenous Authorities and organizations of the Mayan, Xinka and Garifuna people explains that several representatives from various Indigenous councils attended a meeting with Congress to deliver another message, which was received by Sandra Lorena de León Teo, President of the Cultural Commission of Congress as well as members of the Indigenous Peoples Commission.

An “exclusive session” scheduled for June 2, 2022 was intended for further examination of the proposed law. However, the meeting was canceled by Shirley Rivera, President of the Board of Directors of Congress, with only two days' notice and on the pretext that there were more pressing issues to be discussed in plenary sessions. The coalition of Ajq’ijab’ suggested a new date for June 16, 2022, but Congresswoman Rivera neglected to respond. As of July 12, 2022, a new meeting date has not been set.

The Alianza de Ajq’ijab’ Paxil Kalaya which Tat Baudilio represents shared 6 reasons why they reject Initiative 5923. Allies can draw from this list when taking actions such as writing letters to the Congress of Guatemala (see below):

1. We are not pre-hispanic, we are living.

2. MICUDE (Ministry of Culture and Athletics) acts from a racist, opportunist, and exclusive ideology against pueblos originarios.

3. The law contains concepts like religion, customs, and tradition, but does not accurately represent Mayan spirituality.

4. We are not recognized as pueblos originarios nor as actors with historic rights.

5. We are not included in the plan for implementation.

6. Since the 2008 Law 3835 “Sacred Places of the Indigenous Communities” has been shelved since 2012, why is this initiative given the status of “national urgency?”

How to take action

Luis Alberto Jímenez of the Ancestral Council of the Unified Abya Yala and Daniel Ardita of the International Movement for the Rights for Mother Earth brought this issue to light through an informational video about Initiative 5923 which they submitted to Weave News’s “Confluence - Confluencia” series. Action steps suggested by Jimenez and Ardita in their Confluence submission include:

• Sign this LETTER OF SOLIDARITY and deliver it to the nearest Guatemalan Embassy

• Send a letter of solidarity to the Guatemalan Congress's Social Media Pages and/or:

  • Shirley Rivera, President of Congress: sjrivera@congreso.gob.gt

  • The Culture Commission of Congress: comisioncultura@congreso.gob.gt

  • Sandra Lorena de León Teo, President of the Cultural Commission of Congress: sldeleon@congreso.gob.gt

  • A complete list of legislators who collaborated on this law and their contact information can be found HERE

• Send a letter of solidarity to representatives at The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the United Nations:

  • Francisco Calí Tzay, Mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: hrc-sr-indigenous@un.org

  • Alexandra Xanthaki, Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights: hrc-sr-culturalrights@un.org

  • Ahmed Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief: hrc-sr-freedomofreligion@un.org

  • Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD): OHCHR-cerd@un.org

• SHARE both this article and the Confluence submission to your social media platforms

• Create a SOLIDARITY VIDEO using these pointers, share it on social media, and then share the links with Confluence’s social media pages (see the Confluence website for more info)

Additional action steps

• Research and LEARN about the settler colonial laws that threaten OR seek to protect sacred ceremonial and/or cultural sites in your region. Ask critical questions such as:

  • How do these laws relate to the 5923 Legislative initiative? 

  • Are the affected Indigenous communities accurately represented? 

  • Are there any immediate, local actions that can be taken to address any existing injustices?

  • Are Indigenous communities in your area asking for support and solidarity? What do they need?

• DISCUSS this issue and share resources with friends, family members, and peers who might not be aware of it and urge them to participate in these action steps as well.

• Access and READ the resources linked throughout this article to learn more background information and context.

Resources

A legal analysis of Initiative 5923, provided by Daniel Ardita, can be found here
https://content.app-sources.com/s/52500356363151523/uploads/Images/5923_Initiative_Legal_Analyses_ENGLISH-4863230.pdf.

Recursos en español

Se puede encontrar un analisis legal de la iniciativa 5923 aquí
https://content.app-sources.com/s/52500356363151523/uploads/Images/Analisis_Legal_Iniciativa_legislativa_5923-4871347.pdf

El comunicado del 16 de junio de la Alianza Paxil Kayalá
https://content.app-sources.com/s/52500356363151523/uploads/Images/10.-_Comunicado_16_06_2022-7208166.pdf

VÍDEO: la reunión con el Congreso el 11 de mayo
https://fb.watch/dQmg2RuEJl/

VÍDEO: Entrega del Consejo Ancestral del Abya Yala Unificado para la serie “Confluencia”
https://youtu.be/4JX5BJVQnYU

Note: Some Spanish texts have been translated by the author.

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