Usos y costumbres
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Usos y costumbres ("customs and traditions"; literally, "uses and customs") is the indigenous customary law in Hispanic America. Since the era of Spanish colonialism, authorities have recognized local forms of rulership, self governance, and juridical practice, with varying degrees of acceptance and formality. The term is often used in English without translation.
Usos y costumbres political mechanisms are used by numerous indigenous peoples in Mexico, Guatemala, Bolivia, and other countries to govern water rights, in criminal and civil conflicts, and to elect their representatives to regional and national bodies.
Spanish colonial authorities in the Americas were ordered to investigate the traditions and customs of indigenous communities, and to apply these traditions to disputes among Indian subjects.[1] Scholar José Rabasa traces the term usos y costumbres to the New Laws of 1542, which ordered traditional procedures be used in dealings with Indians rather than "ordinary" Spanish legal proceedings. The division of legal authority is associated with notion of a Republic of Indians (Spanish: República de Indios) subject to distinct legal norms under Spanish colonial rule.[2] According to Rabasa, this division "at once protects Indian communities from Spaniards, criollos, and mestizos, and alienates Indians in a separate republic, in a structure not unlike apartheid."[2]
North America
Central America
Guatemala
In Guatemala, Maya communities have used a variety of community-oriented or informal mechanisms for conflict resolution. They are commonly referred to as Maya justice, or usos y costumbres.[4]