Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report by Independent Delegation of International Lawyers to Guatemala, entitled We are not trespassers: this is our land: Agrarian conflict and Indigenous peoples’ rights in Alta Verapaz, published on 19 October 2023, whether his Department is taking steps to help protect (a) indigenous communities and (b) land rights in Guatemala.

When I [Minister Rutley] visited Guatemala in April, I spoke with representatives from civil society groups about the need to protect space for environmental and human rights defenders including from indigenous communities. These concerns are regularly reflected in bilateral discussions we have with the Guatemalan Government and in international fora, including in the UK's response to the 42nd Universal Periodic Review of Human Rights in Guatemala. We also regularly raise the issue of human rights defenders and land defenders in Guatemala via our Embassy in Guatemala City, working in conjunction with other international partners, with the aim of promoting full respect for human rights for all Guatemalans. FCDO Officials attended a roundtable with the Independent Delegation of International Lawyers to Guatemala on 18 October, in order to discuss the findings of their report and consider their recommendations.