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But the Mayan communities in the buffer zone rejected that decision; they say it is illegitimate because it defies the judgment handed down by Justice Michelle Arana. And so the Mayans say that they'll monitor the drill site inside the Sarstoon Temash National themselves. Sounds a lot simpler than it is - since that would be considered a trespass by the private oil company. But trepass is just what they did yesterday. Our colleagues from KREM News were there - and Daniel Ortiz put together this story.

Daniel Ortis reporting
Yesterday morning at around 10:00, about a hundred or so residents of the Mayan Buffer Communities made their way to US Capital Energy's A1 Drill Site, which is about 10 meters inside the Sarstoon Temash National Park.

7 miles before reaching the site, the group encountered resistance from Police and US Capital Energy's representatives.

Their wanted to go into US Capital's compound unhindered, since, according to them, the oil company should no longer be there. They asked no permission from the company to accommodate them, but the Mayans believed they needed none from anyone.

Pablo Mes - Maya Leader
"The community members is that they want to join the alcaldes and the chairman that's here as we explained the purpose is to go and see what's happening out there - this is Maya lands and we want to be able to enter."

Dr. Michael Tewes - Health Safety Environmental Manager, US Capital Energy
"Mr. Mes, let me try and make it simpler for the people right. This is a big crowd of people, we can't deal with all of this, we can't deal with the security of this crowd. But if at any time any alcalde wants to bring his people to come here please man, get in touch with us at the office."

Pablo Mes - Maya Leader
"We did that. We inform the company that we were going to be here."

Dr. Michael Tewes
"No sir. Someone drop a letter in my secretary office and left, nobody talk to nobody. We might not even have spoken to anybody. We might not even have known of this."

Pablo Mes - Maya Leader
"We informed the Forest Department."

Dr. Michael Tewes
"Where us the Forest Department?"

Pablo Mes - Maya Leader
"Let me put this out, we did not ask the Forest Department asking for permission to be here. The 2010 judgment and the 2013 court of appeal decision also said that this is Maya land. So it's a matter of courtesy that we inform the Forest Department and now we are being very courteous in also asking the company."

Dr. Michael Tewes
"Let me tell you something that is not for me to decide. That's why the government has its people here to decide the law. I am not a lawyer, I don't decide the law. I follow the instructions that are given to us."

That back and forth continued on for about 15 minutes. It wasn't until the police told the crowd that they weren't being physically restrained from entering, that they jumped over the rope and barged into the area.

Once inside, the leaders declared that they intend to police the drill site for themselves every single day.

Pablo Mes - Maya Leader
"Today we come to set foot on this land and we want to say that every day from here on we will be watching what's going to happen on these lands; these lands that belongs to the Maya people. We know the forest, we know the river ways, we know every creek, every dry swamp - we will be watching this land because we will defend it for our people."

"We came here this morning not to fight. We came with no machetes, we came with no gun, we didn't come to cause any crime. But if it is a crime to walk on our own lands; if it is a crime to walk freely on our own land then let them take us where they want to take us."

Alfonso Cal - President, Toledo Alcalde Association
"If I go to another country - just walk in, you think they will let me go like that - no. Absolutely they will arrest me. So we are not afraid, we are walking in our own land and this is the struggle that we will do for our 39 communities. We are doing to strengthen ourselves together so that we move together."

Greg Ch'oc - Executive Director, SATIIM
"You cannot be saying you are acting in good faith when you are allowing the company to do what they want. It reminds of what successive government leaders have said: you come with us like a gun in front of you - that's exactly what the government is doing. They want to consult but yet allow US Capital to continue with the activity. That's not good faith - that could never be good faith. A rational person will never conclude to be good faith."

Cristina Coc - Spokesperson, Maya Leaders Alliance
"And out testimony for this morning is to say that we are standing on our land as Maya people. This is our land. We do not need a court to tell us. We do not need the politicians to accept or to agree with us - this is our land. We were born here, we were raised here, we eat off this land, we will die on this land and if it is at the hands of US Capital, we will do so."

Of important note is that after their initial reluctance to allow the Mayans into the Drilling area, Dr. Michael Tewes, the Company's Health Safety and Environmental Manager, allowed the bus carrying the Mayans to travel all the way to the drill site.

The condition was that they could enter the area, but they couldn't leave the bus when they arrived at the actual drilling area.