The situation of the Mesoamerican peoples who defend their territories is not easy. Only in Guatemala, 26 people have been murdered so far this year, as a result of the communities resistance. They opposed the investment for palm oil, sugar cane, oil, mining, hydroelectric dams and agrofuels.

This was exposed in the Guatemalan community of Yalambojoch, where the Sixth Week of Biological and Cultural Diversity is taking place.

This ’Week’ was created in 2001 in response to the threat of Plan Puebla Panama.

A lot has happened since then.

The Central American organizations have proved that, besides opposing monoculture plantations and megaprojects, they are capable of building their own alternatives.

Godinez mentioned the community consultations in Huehuetenango department -28 in 32 municipalities; the important process of recovery of 440 species of corn seeds that were lost; and the visible impacts of climate change (this year 40% of the harvest was lost in the south of the country due to drought).

He also honored the memory of tens of Maya indigenous who were killed during the latest coup d’état in that part of Guatemala, and compared that situation with the current state of affairs in Central America, which is marked by what is happening with the coup in Honduras. “Power does not stop.

If we are not careful, we’ll have to face those problems again in El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua, and even in Costa Rica”, he warned.