Awas Tingni versus Nicaragua and the demarcation process of indigenous land on Nicaragua’s Caribbean Coast

Abstract

This article assesses the land demarcation process in the community of Awas Tingni.  It specifically looks at how the Nicaraguan State has fulfilled its commitments after the ruling issued by the Human Rights Interamerican Court of the Organization of American States (OAS) in August 2001. The Nicaraguan State also committed to approving the Law on Communal Land Tenure in favor of indigenous people and ethnic communities of the Autonomous Regions of the Atlantic Coast and the areas of Rio Bocay, Coco, Indio and Maíz as well as its implementation in the above-mentioned territories.  The author analyzes the contents of the law and its implementation by the National Commission on Demarcation.