On the occasion of the International Day of Rural Women, proclaimed in 2007 by the United Nations General Assembly with the aim of recognizing the rights and contributions of women living in rural areas — including girls and Indigenous women — to social well-being, economic development, and the care of natural resources, as well as to shed light on the inequalities and multiple forms of violence that prevent women from fully enjoying rights such as social protection, education, and health, among many others, we, as the Coalition of Women, express our concern over the state neglect and exclusion that women continue to face across the country’s territories.
In Guatemala, poverty and extreme poverty disproportionately affect rural women, girls, Indigenous, and peasant women, who face higher levels of discrimination, violence, and lack of opportunities. Women have fewer employment options, and our work and leadership are still not fully recognized in public or private spaces — in the home, in agriculture, in the popular economy, and across the many areas where we contribute daily.
The International Day of Rural Women is also an opportunity to raise our voices, as women who, together with our families and communities, have suffered forced evictions from our own territories. We demand justice, peace, and respect for the right to defend the right to self-determination of peoples.
We honor the historic struggle of women in the defense of territory, land rights, and access to other productive resources. We pay special tribute to Adelina Maquín Caal, Mama Maquín, a symbol of courage, strength, and dignity.
As the Women´s Coalition, we call on the State of Guatemala to:
- Comply with all the recommendations issued by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to the State of Guatemala.
- Eliminate all forms of discrimination against women by implementing effective actions and showing greater commitment to achieving Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls — with particular attention to indicators 5.a.1 (women’s ownership of agricultural land) and 5.a.2 (equal land ownership rights).
- Incorporate our proposals in the process of updating the National Policy for the Promotion and Comprehensive Development of Women and the Equity of Opportunities Plan. These goals can only be achieved through:
- the allocation of specific and adequate budgets for women;
- the design, implementation, and updating of institutional policies and action plans related to rural women;
- the generation of databases that provide a clearer understanding of the real situation of rural women;
- the promotion and support of the prompt approval of the Law on Women’s Economic Development (No. 5452); and
- the establishment of alliances and mechanisms of collaboration among peasant, Indigenous, and women’s organizations, human rights defenders, and government institutions and decision-makers.
- the allocation of specific and adequate budgets for women;
For access to land!
Long live rural women!
Asociación de Mujeres Guatemaltecas Mamá Maquín
Comité Campesino del Altiplano (CCDA)
Coordinación de ONG y Cooperativas (CONGCOOP)
Movimiento de Comunidades por la Defensa del Agua Qana' Ch'och'
Plataforma Ley de Desarrollo Económico de las Mujeres (LeyDem)
Unión Verapacense de Organizaciones Campesinas (UVOC)
International Land Coalition – Latin America and the Caribbean (ILC LAC)
Guatemala, 13 October 2025
Statement issued in the framework of the “Rural Women’s Social Forum: The Right to Land and the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination in Guatemala,” organized by the National Land Coalition Platform in Guatemala.