Organization of the 48 cantons of Totonicapán

Central Plaza of Totonicapan in 2012.

In the 19th century, segmental municipal corporations were established and
replaced the K'iche's in Totonicapán. From then on, the indigenous municipality
was delegated to the second instance, through the fourth councilor. However,
although at the head of government the municipality organizes political life together
with the other government bodies, the auxiliary mayors are the body in which the
"cantons" and "p arajes" channel their concerns to request financing for public
works and administrative or legal advice. The indigenous mayor or fourth councilor
- fundamentally K'iche' - fulfills his role as an intermediary between the municipality
of Totonicapán and the auxiliary mayors of the 48 Cantons.

Since then, the Assembly of Communal Mayors and its Board of Directors of the 48
Cantons of Totonicapán constitute the institution with the greatest
representativeness and legitimacy of the people of Totonicapán, given its history
and structure. Its assembly is made up of the entire population of the rural and
urban communities of the municipality and its fundamental objective is focused on
ensuring and defending the collective interests of the people of Totonicapán. Thus,
the organization of each canton in Totonicapán is fundamentally structured on two
principles:

A political-social ideology from the Mayan worldview, whose impact is so strong

that it has legal recognition at the national and international level through
Convention 169 and the Political Constitution of the Republic.
A social political structure in accordance with the three powers of the state of
Guatemala. Now, although both structures are respected within the cantons,
according to the ideology of the people, the Board of Directors is more
respected.47
The activities carried out by the 48 cantons are five: first is legal activity, since it is
considered the basis for resolving conflicts, addressing complaints and putting
customary law into practice. In second place is the administrative one, which looks
after the heritage of the community and the people of Totonicapán and the
common well-being of the population; and then, in third place is social activity,
which addresses all forms of community organization, prioritizing health, education
and security programs. Finally, there are political and cultural activities, which
maintain the organization of the community, transmit information on issues that
benefit or harm the community and reach a consensus on decision-making,
preserving the ancestral practices of the legal, social and political system of
culture. pre-columbian

Historically, the structure of the 48 cantons has actions of historical uprisings that
arise from the rebellion of Atanasio Tzul in 1820; They have made calls that
culminate in road blockades and demonstrations, defending the interests of the
K'iche' people from a philosophy based on three aspects: Cosmos, Nature and
person.
“The Partialities are family forest units that were assigned right in the first moments
of the purchase of the communal forest in Totonicapán, many have records of
family use rights; This is because they are families that have managed it for
generations. They have their own modes of use, shifts and participate in 48
cantons, however the organization has had several problems.
Despite the ancestral form of organization, the work of articulation has been slow,
from 2012 to 2013 some spaces for reunion were achieved, based on the control of
the logging of the Pinabete where the groups have areas designated for planting
and marketing and others are specifically for conservation.”
During the first days of December “Las Partialidades” denounced the lack of
support from the National Council of Protected Areas CONAP in the protection of
the Pinabete tree, the problem is that CONAP does not have a budget allocated to
do so. Another problem that was reported is the continuity of people who continue
illegally felling trees in the community of Quiacquix despite the community patrols
carried out to protect them.
On December 2, the Partialidad of the community of Chipuac and Quiacquix
carried out the “Campaign to protect the Pinabete”, in this activity the communal
authorities, the representatives of the eight Partialities that make up the Table of
Partialities of Totonicapán, the Utz Association participated. Che' and the INAB.
The Roundtable of Partialities organized this campaign to invite the population and
the authorities to unify efforts in the protection of the tree, especially when the end
of the year arrives due to the excessive commercialization that they do of it.
They took a tour through the forests of Partialidad Chipuac and Quiacquix, they
were in the reforested areas and in the Pinabete protection areas, the neighbors
shared with the visitors what their experience is in the management and control of
the surveillance they carry out in the forests. During the year, 24 hours a day, 365
days a year, at least 10 men work night and day shifts to take care of the trees and
the forest.
The communal lands are the entire communal land of the Kiché Mayan people of
Totonicapán, every millimeter of land, water, air, flora, fauna and forests that
comprise it is called “Los Altos de María Tecun Regional Park”, which are an
approximate of 254.8 hectares of forests and more than 2,000 water sources and
the territory with the greatest conservation of the Pinabete tree in the country.[2]

Vicente Menchu from the community of Quiacquix, commented that "to cut down a
tree we ask for permission and forgiveness from the tree because it is alive, it
protects births and we get oxygen from it, however outsiders enter our forests, they
cut down the Pinabetes without mercy, regardless of the fact that they are in
danger of spreading, much less the effort behind a small tree. In our forest you will
be able to clearly see the felling of the Pinabete that some bad actors carried out
on Tuesday, December 1, this fact causes us sadness and anger because despite
the time in which we live, people are not yet aware of the damage it causes," he
said.