Case Study- Mayan Land Rights: Pablo Mize (11/27/12)

Today, the George Price Center was used as a place of great discussion, from learning about the history and culture of Belize to the environmental challenges of sustainable development.  I paid particular notice to Pablo Mize who led a discussion on Mayan land rights.  Pablo was very knowledgeable on the subject and let us take a look into the challenges these indigenous people face through the expansion of technology.  Pablo Mize works to coordinate programs for the community, to fortify land rights for the Mayan people.  The Mayans have a strong relationship with the environment, believing that they are sustainable with nature, essentially saying they don’t waste what they are given.

            There is a tremendous effort to safeguard the identity of the people and their culture.  If the Mayans loose their land, they are basically loosing their identity as a community.  They would loose the relationship among each other because they would have nothing to pass onto the younger generations. 

            Belizean companies are selling/buying Mayan lands.  The Mayan leaders requested support from the government and in 2007 the Mayan people got their rights back to the land they have been utilizing for hundreds of years.  Their fundamental motivation is safeguarding their cultural identity, which has a direct correlation with the land.

            Another large challenge the Mayans face is oil exploration; companies must have permission from the government to search for oil in Mayan communities.  The Mayans are not objecting to overall development but they are concerned to the degree in which development will affect their land.  The key question is: do Mayan people have the sole rights to their land and can they continue into the future without fear of losing their land and cultural identity?

            A large apprehension for the Mayan people is losing their identity, which is being deteriorated because of land development.  Nature is the key way that knowledge is transferred from generation to generation.  A gap is being created between the young and the old generations. This divide is occurring because the children are going to school for a majority of the day instead of learning hands on from the land.  The land is of vital importance to their way or life and needs to be safeguarded, “I am owned by the land I am on”.