Chapter Five. La Coordinadora Nacional Indígena Y Campesina And The Indigenous Struggle For Land

Abstract

This chapter presents the second case study by analysing the historical development of La Coordinadora Nacional Indigena y Campesina (CONIC), an indigenous campesino organisation that formed with the intention of working on the issues of land and cultural identity. It examines the factors that shaped the evolution of CONIC?s politics, detailing how the organisation?s objectives, political strategies, identity, structure and wider relationships evolved since its formation in 1992. The main point of differentiation between CONIC and other indigenous organisations was that it defined itself as an indigenous and campesino organisation. Guatemala?s system of land tenure is the most unequal in Latin America, and has historically been a major cause of social tension, poverty, exclusion and division. The internal armed conflict (1960?1996) generated new, highly complex problems in relation to the land situation.Keywords: campesino organisation; CONIC; Guatemala; indigenous organisations; internal armed conflict; land tenure; Latin America