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While most scholars working on resistance and decolonisation in Latin America and the Caribbean are familiar with the Zapatistas, far fewer have afforded committed attention to the parallel Maya land rights struggle and autonomous social movement in the region. Notably, a movement that is currently advancing in both Central America and the Caribbean, namely, Belize—a former colony of the British Crown. Accordingly, this piece offers a summary of the struggle of the Qʼeqchiʼ and Mopan Maya communities of Toledo District, Southern Belize. More specifically, it introduces readers to the Maya Leaders Alliance (MLA)—an ever-evolving grassroots coalition of Maya organisations, land defenders, and human rights activists that comprise the movement. We start by illustrating the current context of heightened tension that exists between the Maya and the state, and then share an overview of the movement's political aims and programme of activities in the face of the historical, structural, and ongoing colonial forces the Maya are up against. Ultimately, this profile will demonstrate how Maya communities in Belize are practising 'non-metaphorical decolonisation' and engendering 'Indigenous resurgence' whilst mobilising for land, dignity, and a peaceful future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the se' komonil concept of living in respectful togetherness and reciprocal dignity and human-environment interdependence and sahil ch'oolej concept of holistic joy, mutual flourishing and shared upliftment for the Maya of Southern Belize amid efforts to safeguard and renew Indigenous ways of knowing, living and being. Topics discussed include the land rights movement of the Maya, threats to the culture of the group, and the meaning of joy for Maya youth.

Over the past three decades, however, state-sponsored industrial logging, mining, and agribusiness activities have increasingly threatened Maya land rights as the government has granted concessions to multinational corporations without consulting Maya villages. At present, the Toledo Alcaldes Association (TAA), consisting of 78 leaders from 41 Maya communities in Toledo District, is the main representative body of the Maya people. Citing the MLA and TAA's claim that the alcaldes represent a form of customary communal governance sanctioned by Maya communities collectively, the government asserted: "We do not believe that there is such "collective governance system" of the Maya people.". [Extracted from the article]