ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT, DEFENSE OF THE LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES (ACODET)

At this 2025 General Assembly, the communities threatened by the construction of the Xalalá dam reaffirm our commitment to continue caring for and defending the sacred territory that makes up the Chixoy and Copón river basins, as we have been doing for the past 17 years. We are well aware that our rivers and lands continue to be coveted and threatened by large electricity-generating companies, oil companies, and palm plantations. The majority of electrical energy is generated in the departments of Quiché, Alta Verapaz, and Baja Verapaz, yet 80% of the communities there still lack access to this basic service. Currently, a law is being discussed that would allow the company PERENCO to continue exploiting oil in Petén. In the border zone of the municipalities of Chisec and Ixcán, there is also a threat to reactivate oil exploitation, as a contract has been granted to the company LEGANCY HOLDING. We call on the government and Congress to respect our right to free, prior, and informed consultation and to provide or withhold consent before any laws or licenses are approved that affect Indigenous territories.

We acknowledge the openness of the current government to engage in dialogue with local authorities and to recognize the State’s historical debt to Indigenous Peoples. We listened with hope to President Arévalo’s commitment to building roads in regions neglected by previous governments and to promoting access to electricity in our communities. We eagerly await the fulfillment of the promise made for rural electricity access—but without any political conditions or requirements to accept hydroelectric projects, as has happened in the past. We ask for support and coordination with community-led electricity generation initiatives, such as the Association for Community Light (Asociación de Luz Comunitaria) and municipal electricity companies (EMRE). We demand that the company ENERGUATE be stripped of its monopoly on rural electricity distribution, as it provides poor service despite benefiting from funds from the Rural Electrification Program (Programa de Electrificación Rural).

The communities organized under ACODET:

  • Reject the unjustified salary increase for members of Congress, who seek to maintain their privileges at all costs and co-opt municipal mayors through control of public resources and development projects.
  • Demand that the government—especially the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Ministerio de Ambiente y Recursos Naturales)—include Indigenous peoples in any dialogue or discussion around a law for water in Guatemala. We will support the proposed law, as long as it guarantees water for collective use and imposes penalties on corporate companies that abusively divert rivers and water sources for commercial purposes, which violates human rights. At the same time, such a law must recognize water (rivers, lakes, springs, streams, and others) as a living being and a subject of rights.
  • Call on everyone to remain committed to participating in the fight against all forms of corruption and impunity, and in defense of democratic institutions.
  • Condemn the criminalization of our brothers and sisters in San Juan Limonar, of Don Rigoberto Juárez, Hermitaño López, and other Indigenous authorities criminalized and persecuted for defending their land and territory.
  • Reject the violent evictions of Q’eqchi’ and Poqomchi’ communities in the northern region of the country. We need the government to strengthen, with funding and committed staff, the institutions responsible for addressing land conflicts. The historic dispossession and lack of legal security over our land continues to enable human rights violations against us.
  • Demand that the government prioritize efforts and resources to complete the construction of the Zona Paz road, the Ixcán hospital, the RDAV35 route (from Cubilgüitz to San Luis, in the municipality of Cobán), and other projects abandoned by previous administrations.
  • Call on communities to remain united and organized to defend our territory, demand our rights, and work together to improve our living conditions. We can continue promoting community turbines, appropriate technologies, and our agricultural production to maintain food security, achieve energy sovereignty, and avoid dependence on corporate interests or the migration policies of other countries.
  • Urge all communities to promote and support the participation of women in all areas of life and positions of authority. We call for the elimination of all forms of violence against women.
  • Call on all communities to reforest riverbanks and water sources, to manage water communally and responsibly, and to be prepared for landslides, floods, and droughts that have increased in recent years due to climate change.

Indigenous Community of Arroyo de Leche, Uspantán, April 5, 2025

Black letters on white background. On the top there is the logo of the organisation and below and on the sides several stamps.