55 Chichupac and neighboring communities of Rabinal were forced to flee their territories after the massacre of January 8, 1982, to escape the prevailing violence in the area carried out by the State security forces, which included massacres, executions, disappearances, rapes and persecutions. Consequently, there was a mass exodus of these populations who sought refuge in the mountains, in other places in the area and, later, in other municipalities, departments, cities and even outside the country. The Army continued to pursue them in the mountains, and also persecuted those who returned to the communities. At the same time, State security forces burned homes, stole belongings and provisions, destroyed crops and harvests, and stole or killed livestock. Thus, they destroyed livelihoods, caused the population’s displacement to continue and prevented their return. Beginning in 1983, members of the National Army built the model village or colony of Chichupac. The people who lived there experienced precarious conditions, under strong military control, without any freedom and were forced to work to feed and support the military. The men were forced to patrol the area again and some women were raped. Finally, between 1986 and 1987 the military abandoned the colony. 178. The evidence presented in this case shows that some communities remained completely empty for a long time and that this situation continued after March 9, 1987, the date on which Guatemala recognized the jurisdiction of this Court, and that many residents of Chichupac village and neighboring communities of the municipality of Rabinal remain displaced to this day. 193 The Court will now determine whether these persons were unable to return to their lands after that date. Thus, as it has done on previous occasions, 194 the Court will analyze the State’s alleged failure to implement the necessary measures to ensure a dignified and safe return for those who remained displaced after March 9, 1987, or to guarantee their voluntary resettlement. B.1. Impossibility of return for the members of Chichupac village and neighboring communities of the municipality of Rabinal 179. The Court recalls that the peace process that put an end to the internal armed conflict in Guatemala began in 1996, that is, nearly 10 years after the State recognized the contentious jurisdiction of this Court. That same year, the civil patrols were legally disbanded and the Historical Clarification Commission (CEH) was created. Given the violent events that they survived and the ongoing context of violence in Guatemala during those 10 years in which the armed conflict continued, the members of Chichupac village and neighboring communities found it impossible to return to their territories during that period, due to a well-founded fear of being subjected to violations of their rights to life and personal integrity. 180. With respect to the period after the internal armed conflict, the evidence shows that there was fear and insecurity among the surviving population due to the continued presence of those responsible for the violence in the area of Rabinal. In this regard, the expert witness Luis Raúl Francisco Salvadó Cardoza explained that, at present, the people who are willing to return to the lands they used to occupy or where they lived, and who have tried to return to the communities, “have frequently seen [in the village] the perpetrators of the crimes, the informers, their torturers, the former patrol members who collaborated in the repression,” “or those who entered the village to destroy the crops.” In addition, “former military commissioners and their local allies exploit their land,” which “causes them insecurity and fear.” Thus, “the desire to return […] is affected by […] the presence of the people and organizations that prompted the exodus and 193 In this regard, the community of Chijom, which had 50 homes, was deserted for a long time and is now populated by approximately seven families. The community of Xeabaj, which prior to the impact of the internal armed conflict had a population distributed in 80 or 90 houses in which large families lived, today only has five or six houses that are inhabited. Cf. Expert opinion of Luis Raúl Francisco Salvadó Cardoza presented to the Inter-American Court during the public hearing on April 28, 2016. Likewise, the residents of the communities of Xeabaj, Toloxcoc and Chirrum “were unable to recover their leaders and their production projects.” Cf. Report on damage to mental (moral) health prepared by the psychologist Nieves Gómez Dupuis on May 5, 2010 (evidence file, folios 1323 and 1324). 194 Cf. Case of the Moiwana Community v. Suriname, para. 108, and Case of the Río Negro Massacres v. Guatemala, para. 180.