More than 60,000 Maya people have been living in the Sierra del Lacandón National Park (SDLNP) and Laguna del Tigre National Park (LDTNP) since before these areas were declared protected, and they are now in a situation of insecurity, constantly facing threats of eviction from their homes.[1] 

This situation is aggravated by the presence of oil concessions, militarization of the area, unresolved agrarian conflicts[2], and the lack of effective state mechanisms for the recognition and restitution of Indigenous Peoples' lands. In this regard, in 2004,  the government declared a state of emergency in the (LDTNP). In 2010, the government authorized the continuation of oil drilling in the area for another 15 years by Perenco.[3] In 2011, a military unit called the Green Battalion was created to combat illegal settlements and the destruction of forests in the region.[4] By 2018, at least 26 open cases of agrarian conflicts related to protected areas were registered against Indigenous communities, which were either under investigation, facing prosecution, or already under eviction orders.[5]

From 2007 to 2017, eight of the 54 communities living in the area were violently evicted, including the destruction of housing, food, and livelihoods.[6]  The evictions took place in Nueva Esperanza (2007), Macabilero (2008), Vergelito (2009), Centro Uno (2009), La Colorada (2009), Nueva Esperanza ( 2009), La Colorada (2010), Nueva Esperanza (2011), El Pescadito (2011), El Florido, Centro Campesino, Pollo Solo y Las Cruces.[7]

In the case of Centro Uno, a  Q'ueqchí' community comprising 164 families was forcibly evicted from the Sierra del Lacandón Park despite having signed a cooperation agreement with the National Council of Protected Areas on 16 June 2009 by about 600 military, police and guards. 

In September 2016, the communities, including communities of Indigenous Peoples adopted the  Alternative Proposal for Integrated and Sustainable Development for Communities affected by the declaration of Laguna del Tigre and Sierra Lacandón. The proposal included the recognition of land rights and the protection of fundamental rights. [8]

The proposal initially raised expectations at both departmental and national levels, briefly opening a dialogue between communities and government authorities. However, this progress was cut short when community leader Jovel Tovar from La Mestiza was arrested for usurpation of protected areas in March 2017, followed by the eviction of the Laguna Larga community in June. [9]

In June 2017, 1,500 members of the police and the military, accompanied by personnel from the Nature Protection Division (DIPRONA) and “eco-guards” of the CONAP, carried out the forced eviction of about 500 maya Q’eqchi, Chuj  Indigenous Peoples of the community of Laguna Larga.[10] Their houses, schools, churches, and animals were burnt. At least 169 community leaders in the area were under investigation by the Public Ministry which demonstrates a strategy and policy of criminal prosecution against communities. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights notably documented a discourse that criminalizes evicted persons, accusing them of collaborating with drug gangs and of committing crimes.[11] As of 2024, the situation for the displaced Indigenous communities of Laguna Larga remains dire. Over 100 families have spent more than seven years living in precarious conditions along the Guatemala-Mexico border. These families continue to demand either a return to their land or immediate reallocation. 

In 2018 the Pollo Solo community was forcibly evicted in Serra la Candona.[12] Some of these families were able to relocate with relatives in Alta Verapaz and Izabal, but others continue to live in an improvised settlement in San Andrés, Petén.[13]

 In addition to the evictions, criminalization, repression and imprisonment of the communities, authorities, and leaders, [14] at least six community members were killed.[15] Protests have been repressed with the use of military forces. [16]

It has been reported that projects promoted by WCS Guatemala may have contributed to a climate of criminalization and evictions.[17] Among these projects are the adoption by WCS of the master plan for the biosphere reserve, as well as the government-led project “Recovery of Governance of the Candelaria Triangle,” aimed at establishing territorial control and preventing threats to cultural and natural assets in the southeastern area of the Triangle. Additionally, WCS supported the establishment of permanent civil-military patrols within the corridor between Laguna del Tigre and the Candelaria Triangle. In 2016 alone, 48 joint patrols were conducted by CONAP, WCS, and the army, often resulting in the arrest of community members, with a particular focus on communities targeted for eviction.[18]