You are here

Guatemala: News & Updates

Guatemala had the longest and bloodiest civil war in Central American history: 36 years (1960-96). The US-backed military was responsible for a genocide (“scorched earth policy”) that wiped out 200,000 mostly Maya indigenous civilians.  War criminals are still being tried in the courts.

Learn more here

News Article

The undersigned concerned individuals, scholars, human rights organizations, environmental organizations, and representatives of the tourism sector in Rio Dulce are writing to express our serious concerns over mining activities planned to be carried out by the Canadian company Central America Nickel (CAN) via their subsidiaries Rio Nickel S.A. and Nichromet S.A in the Santa Cruz Mountains of Guatemala.

As you will see in the news articles and timeline below, opposition to mining in this region is vehement and virtually unanimous by Indigenous Q’eqchi’ Maya communities. Moreover, community members, tourism sector representatives, environmental experts, public health authorities, leading scholars, and human rights NGOs see any form of mining in the Santa Cruz Mountains as a fundamental threat to Indigenous sovereignty, to human rights, and to the local water supply.

News Article
After a 14 years long legal battle of Maya Q’eqchi’ Plaintiffs from Guatemala and their Canadian lawyers against the Canadian mining company Hudbay Minerals it came to a fair and reasonable settlement in October 2024.
 
Now the "quiet period" all parties agreed to is over and the Guatemalan Plaintiffs, their lawyers and Rights Action can now openly speak about how they achieved justice and the challenges they faced doing that.
News Article

Members of the Parliament of the Indigenous Xinka People (PAPXIGUA) gave a press conference on May 8, 2025 in front of the Government Palace in Guatemala City after delivering the results of the community consultation ordered by the Constitutional Court in 2018. The consultation process lasted 7 years, but the resistance against the El Escobal mine, that was arbitrarily installed in the territory, has been ongoing for more than 15 years—with intense moments of repression, including states of siege, attacks and assassinations of their members. Throughout the struggle, the state and corrupt local and international forces have intervened in the consultation process, worked to delay it, spread misinformation, and attempted to modify the results.

This mine has passed through several companies, finally remaining in the hands of the Canadian mining company Pan American Silver, which has yet to respond to the refusal of mining extraction by the Xinka people of Santa Rosa, Jalapa and Jutiapa. The Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM), the state body in charge of this process, must respond to the will of the Xinka people.

Despite community opposition since 2010, the Ministry of Energy and Mines granted the exploitation license in 2013. Communities organized demonstrations in protest. On May 1, 2013, President Otto Pérez Molina declared a State of Siege, deployed 8,000 soldiers and police, suspended constitutional guarantees, and made numerous arrests. Police and protesters were killed during the State of Seige.

 Resistance continued on the streets and in the courts. Judges issued injunctions to suspend mining operations; other judges undid those injunctions. Finally, the highest court of Guatemala (Constitutional Court) ruled on September 3, 2018 that the government must conduct a proper, thorough and transparent consultation with the Xinka people.  After stalling by the Ministry of Energy of Mines and the Ministry of the Interior, the consultation was conducted 2019-2025, and the Xinka people have now formally announced their decision. No to silver mining !

With the persistence that characterizes the Indigenous Peoples of Guatemala, the Xinka people said NO!  In their statement, PAPXIGUA said: “We deny our consent to the Escobal mining project.” We are now awaiting the response from the corresponding entities, as well as actions and calls for solidarity from the Xinka people.  #TheRightToConsentIsRespected

News Article

NACLA editorial committee members Jorge Cuéllar and Hilary Goodfriend recently wrapped a marathon, three-episode podcast series on Central America with The Dig, a podcast hosted by Daniel Denvir through Jacobin Radio. This sweeping conversation on the region’s history, political economy, and present conjuncture is intended to serve as an accessible yet comprehensive tool for scholars and activists, beginning with Central American state formation and the imperialist interventions of the late 19th century and concluding with reflections on the far-right demonization of migration in the United States today. 

Pages