Massive court victory for Santa Cruz and Conejo Maya!!
Posted: 19/10/2007 - 11:53 AM
Author: Colin
It took nearly three hours for Chief Justice, Dr. Abdulai Conteh, to pronounce his judgment. Every step of the way he tightened the noose on the Government of Belize’s case. It became clear that the Mayan brothers and sisters from Toledo rural were marching on to an improbable and astounding victory. Still, even after almost three long hours and nary a plug for the government’s side, the audience remained on guard for the inevitable BUT! It never came.
In his ruling on Claim 171, Santa Cruz village versus The Attorney General and the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, and Claim 172, Conejo village against the same defendants, the Chief Justice of Belize, Honorable Abdulai Conteh, gave judgment in favor of the villages on all counts.
The court declared (in summary) that the claimants, the villages of Santa Cruz and Conejo, hold…collective and individual rights in the lands and resources that they have used and occupied according to Maya customary practices and that these rights constitute “property”; that the Maya villages of Santa Cruz and Conejo hold collective title to the lands their members have traditionally used and occupied; that the government determine, demarcate and provide official documentation of these villages’ titles and customary rights…without prejudice to the rights of neighboring Villages; that the defendants (GOB) cease and abstain from any acts that might…affect the existence, value, use or enjoyment of the property located in the geographic area occupied and used by the Maya people of Santa Cruz and Conejo without their informed consent…that in respect to the matter the government also complies with the safeguards of the constitution; that the government…abstain from issuing leases and grants, abstain from issuing any regulations concerning land use, and abstain from issuing any concessions for resource exploitation…including…permits or contracts authorizing logging, prospecting or exploration (include oil), and mining or similar activity.
For Mayan rights activist, Cristina Coc, she couldn’t hold back the tears of joy after the hard fought victory in court. Immediately after the case she described herself as being “incredibly excited.” Later that afternoon at a press conference at the Radisson Fort George, a sobered Cristina spoke of the long struggle, declaring that “we expect the GOB to respect the court’s decision”, and remembered her late hero, Julian Cho, and his immortal words: We have been to the mountain. Now the mountain must come to us. And thus it seemed this afternoon.
For Mayan rights activist, Gregorio Ch’oc, after declaring himself “extremely happy to see that the Constitution of Belize has protected our rights,” it was all business at the Radisson Fort George later that afternoon as he described the two-decade long “struggle for justice, fairness, and equality”, and his joy at being “able to see the fruits of the struggle.” To loud applause he explained to his eager audience, mostly Maya from Santa Cruz and Conejo who had made the long trip to Belize City from the hills in the deep south, that according to the law the communal lands they have always held “belonged to them”, that the government must demarcate and give title to these communities, and that no leases or development concessions could be granted to anyone without their consent.
It took the Chief Justice 67 pages to explain his judgment. He wasn’t impressed with the GOB defendants’ case, presented by Ms. Nichola Cho with Mrs. Andrea McSweeney McKoy. For their part, the Chief Justice wrote, the defendants relied only on the affidavits of public officials, none of whom, with respect, could claim any expertise in Maya history, culture, sociology or land usage and custom.
In respect to the claimants, Santa Cruz and Conejo, represented by Ms. Antoinette Moore) the Chief Justice thought that they have put an impressive body of evidence before the Court in the form of both affidavit testimonies and expert reports…In addition to the testimonies of witnesses who are members of the Maya communities in Southern Belize…have as well put in evidence the affidavits and reports of non-Maya witnesses who are eminently qualified in the broad field of Maya studies. These witnesses are familiar with the history, ethnography, customs and usages of the Maya. That is to say, they are expert witnesses.
One such affidavit cited was that put together by Gregorio Ch’oc, Cristina Coc, and Martin Chen. In their affidavit, Ch’oc, Coc, and Chen described the Maya people as having inhabited a vast area in Toledo “since time immemorial”; having inhabited the area “long before the arrival of the Spanish…and…British”; that many Maya have been in the area “long before the well-known migrations from Guatemala during the late nineteenth century.”
They further explained that Maya communities “have always had an elected village leader in each village who oversees community affairs”…and that “the central values that underlie our relationships with each other and with the land have been maintained…” In their affidavit they expressed the view that “Maya customary rights have the same moral and legal claim to respect as property rights recognized by the British common law and the Belizean statutory regime”… and claim that… “Within Maya villages, communities regulate population growth and maintain social and cultural cohesion through collective decision-making regarding the settlement of new families.”
Another key affidavit was submitted by Professor Richard R. Wilk, of Indiana University, who, the Chief Justice declared, struck me as very knowledgeable and competent to speak on the issue of Maya customary land tenure and practices. Mr. Wilk declared that “the basis for the Kekchi and Mopan customary system of land management is the concept of usufruct rights, meaning the land is for those who use it”…and that “families can claim and retain plots over long periods of time in an arrangement that resembles private property.”
The Defense seemed to have pitched their tent against the claimants on the principal ground of British sovereignty over British Honduras, the Chief Justice wrote…The argument runs, any claim or title to land the claimants might have had was extinguished by virtue of British sovereignty over the territory…(that Belize’s) independent governments succeeded to the sovereignty that had belonged to the British Crown.
After deep and anxious consideration on that specific issue the Chief Justice declared thathe was convinced and fortified by authorities that the acquisition of sovereignty over Belize, first by the Crown and later, by independent governments, did not displace, discharge or extinguish pre-existing interests (of the Mayans) in and rights to land. He further stated: It is manifest that throughout the unfolding drama regarding the territory, first, between Spain and later Guatemala on the one hand, and the British authorities on the other, the Maya people were all the while living on their land.
For Mr. Arthur Saldivar, who represented the Government in court today, “the judgment was fair. It involved a serious question whether or not customary land tenure existed for the Maya in Southern Belize in respect to Santa Cruz and Conejo…(the)…judgment reconciles their occupation with the rights of every Belizean under the law.” When asked as to what happens to existing leases and other issuances by the GOB in the area, he pointed out that no law is retroactive.
Counsel for villagers from Santa Cruz and Conejo, Ms. Antoinette Moore, was “entirely pleased by the judgment.” She says it: “confirms customary land tenure of the Maya people of Southern Belize and in particular the people of Conejo and Santa Cruz villages.”
There were other stars in the courtroom today. Lawyer Wilfred “Sedi” Elrington declared the judgment an “excellent decision”; Professor of Law from the University of Arizona, James Anaya, called it a “historic decision”, and says “it affirms what the Maya people have known all along”; PNP leader from Toledo, Wil Maheia, called it a “great victory for the people of Belize”; and Jerry Enriquez described it as “a victory for the people”…”it was a judicial principle that needed clarification…and the judgment was fair.”
Few people in Belize thought the Chief Justice would rule in favor of the Mayas. What does it all mean? Prime Minister Musa has said that he will not preside over the balkanization of Belize. The Mayan leaders identified with the Santa Cruz and Conejo claims have said that they are proud Belizeans, to the bone, and they are misrepresented and hurt whenever they are accused of wanting to separate themselves from The Jewel. In a recent development oil companies have won contracts to prospect for oil over every centimeter of land and sea. Is that balkanization? For those of us who love the roots Maya, and identify with the struggles of people downtrodden by big businesses all over the world, we celebrate the Maya victory in court today. But, what does it all mean?
|