Members of the CCDA and BTS travel to Macho Creek to learn community members' ties to the land. Photo credit: Raphael Freston By: Raphael Freston, a cooperant with the Campesino Committee of the Highlands (CCDA) Shifting Seasons Come April, fireflies flit through San Lucas Tolimán at dawn. Community [...]
By Jim Hodgson After a drenching ride along Guatemala’s Atlantic coast from the city of Livingston, our boat approached Macho Creek. It’s a small, mangrove-lined river that leads inland to the Indigenous Q’eqchi’ community also known as Macho Creek. This day, March 21, the river was overflowing its banks [...]
By Jim Hodgson An Indigenous Xinca community on the Pacific coast, south of the Guatemalan capital, has the support of a Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking The Silence Network (BTS) partner in its effort to remain on their land. The 53 families of Nueva Jerusalén (New Jerusalem) have the backing of the Comité [...]
Third in a series by Jim HodgsonRead the second post here Many supporters of Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking The Silence Network (BTS) and other solidarity groups across Canada know Leocadio Juracán and the organization he has been part of since 1989: the Comité Campesino del Altiplano – CCDA (Highlands Committee of Small [...]
Seven lay catechists and three priests murdered four decades ago in Quiché were beatified by the Roman Catholic Church on April 21, 2021. Among them was Fr. Juan Alonso (right), a Spanish missionary priest who served the parish in Lancetillo. Second in a series by Jim Hodgson Read [...]
President Arbenz achieves: ‘Farmer, here is your land. Defend it, care for it, cultivate it.’” (C.P.R. Urbana from LIFE magazine). President Jacobo Arbenz (Cubadebate). Bitter Fruit tells the story of the 1954 coup. Tanks in front of the National Palace after the coup (TeleSUR). Seventy years after land reform promise, [...]
We are very excited to announce the recipients of the 7th Topacio Reynoso Pacheco Award!Since 2016, this award has recognized and supported the efforts of youth groups in Guatemala using art to defend their territory and protect the environment. This award was created to honour the memory, life, and legacy [...]
By Laura Robinson and María Reyes The court room in Puerto Barrios where Maria Cuc Choc's trial was held. Photo Credits: Laura Robinson On April 21st, 2022, BTS accompanied María Cuc Choc, who for the past 16 years has dedicated her life to defending the land and [...]
IMAP joins with organizations representing Indigenous Peoples from across Guatemala to present the Biodiversity and Ancestral Knowledge Law before Congress in the National Capital Photo Credits: Imap Guatemala Originally Written by the Mesoamerican Permaculture Institute Organizations representing Indigenous peoples in Guatemala will present the Biodiversity and Ancestral Knowledge [...]
Last week we visited Lake Atitlan and two of BTS’s partners, the Mesoamerican Institute for Permaculture (IMAP) and the Highland Small Farmers Committee (CCDA). During the visit, we had the chance to sit, connect over cups of Cafe Justicia, and discuss recent success and challenges with both IMAP and [...]
