Exploring Volunteering

Post by Helen Coskeran

Scholarship students in Chichicastenango  Photo: Helen Coskeran

I can’t believe it’s been over two months since I arrived in the Land of Eternal Spring (as the Guatemalan Tourist Board often reiterates). Somehow the sights, sounds and stories that bowled me over at the beginning have become a part of every-day life and sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure I don’t just live my days through in a daze.

My name is Helen Coskeran and ever since a brief visit to Guatemala in 2001 when I did some volunteering in a nursery in Guatemala City and some travelling around the country, I wanted to return. An opportunity came up this year to volunteer in a small NGO Fundamar run by a community of Marist brothers in the capital and to combine this with working with children in Casa Alianza, a home for street children or children from difficult domestic situations. Although tiring, the combination of jobs has been fascinating – the necessary administration work in Fundamar (we mainly run educational and community-based projects) coupled with the hands-on experience at Casa Alianza (I am generally in the library helping with homework, internet searches, computer skills or English but you do have to be flexible!).

I guess I realise now how naive I was after my visit in 2001. I was 18 and rather sheltered from the reality of Guatemala (although my experience at the nursery was definitely an eye-opener). Now older and living in Zona 1 of the capital (even some Guatemalans think I’m crazy to be living there), I feel like I’ve learnt so much more about the reality of every-day life here. Sure it’s great to escape to the tourist spots at the weekend, but I feel in the heart of it here, and that’s the way I like it. For example, working with the girls in Casa Alianza has shown me the difficult route some people’s lives take and yet they are so delighted to have us foreigners working there. They have incredible energy and creativity and I feel privileged to be able to work with them.

In Fundamar, I have come across villages and communities so far-flung that my Guatemalan friends haven’t even heard of them and have read their bloody histories in shock. When I visited the town of Chichicastenango in El Quiché (one of the municipalities that suffered most in the atrocities of the early eighties), it really hit home how much our help was appreciated. We provide scholarships to around 170 kids in the area – including some boarders whose homes lie a 5-hour bus and 6-hour trek through the mountains away. The warm welcome my Australian colleague and I received made us feel like local celebrities and we were so inspired by the students and their fascination with us and our respective countries, that we are starting a pen-pal project between these schools in Chichicastenango and English and Australian schools. We feel that both groups will benefit from the interaction with a completely different culture, and will hopefully raise awareness of Guatemala and the issues here for the English and Australian students.

Other events such as the anniversary of Monseñor Juan Gerardi (assassinated in 1998 after publishing the REMHI [Recovery of Historical Memory] report) and the 15th anniversary of the brutal murder of the Marist brother Moisés Cisneros have made me realise how far the effects of the armed conflict stretched and still stretch as seen in the daily reports of violence. However far Guatemala may have come, it is clear to me that there is a very long way to go.

Helen on a recent visit to a Fundamar Project in Colonia Gerardi on the outskirts of the capital

The classic campaign advert (from Guate en los 80s) for Jorge Serrano Elias who became President of Guatemala in 1991 (and who later went on to try to take absolute power, failed and fled the country).

“Los mismos nos quieren engañar…” If ever you needed evidence of the worthlessness of campaign promises around the world… For more (in Spanish) read video blogger Herbert Toaspern's comments here.

The spectacle of elderly men evading the criminal justice systems around the world by playing out the clock, leaves a bitter aftertaste in the mouth of any onlooker- but to the victims of these men it adds further unwarranted insult to their original injury.

Yesterday (28-05-2006), one such man- Guatemalan former President Romeo Lucas Garcia, whose 1978-1982 government was accused of rights abuses, died aged 81 in a hospital in Venezuela.

For the moment, we won't say much more about this on this blog- there's a great post by Rob Mercatante for those interested in finding out more about the injustices that Lucas Garcia presided over and for which he was never, in his lifetime, tried for. In the UK, this news has currently been covered by the BBC, AlertNet and the Guardian.

UPDATE 09-06-2006:  Below is a open letter to the Guatemalan Congress by Guatemalan NGOs 27-05-2006 after the death of General Romeo Lucas García.

El 24 de junio del 2006, una comisión rogatoria española llegará a Guatemala con el fin de indagar a altos cargos de gobiernos militares guatemaltecos del periodo de 1978 a 1986. Aparte del genocidio cometido contra el pueblo maya, los delitos que se les imputa incluyen la quema de la Embajada de España en 1980 y el asesinato de varios sacerdotes españoles.

¿GUATEMALA: SISTEMA DE JUSTICIA PARALIZADO?

Esta decisión de la justicia española supone de por sí un avance significativo en la lucha contra la impunidad y en la búsqueda de justicia que, hasta el momento, ha sido denegada en Guatemala.

Los crímenes cometidos por las fuerzas de seguridad del Estado durante el conflicto armado interno fueron ampliamente documentados en los informes del Proyecto Interdiocesano de Recuperación de la Memoria Histórica (REMHI), de la Iglesia católica, y de la Comisión para el Esclarecimiento Histórico (CEH), de las Naciones Unidas, así como en más de 566 exhumaciones de cementerios clandestinos realizadas desde 1994.

En particular, vale resaltar que la CEH documentó 626 masacres cometidas por las fuerzas del Estado y considera que se cometieron actos de genocidio. Además de numerosos casos presentados por hechos específicos, en 2000 y 2001 se presentaron ante las instancias guatemaltecas dos demandas por crímenes de lesa humanidad, genocidio y crímenes de guerra contra los altos mandos de los gobiernos del General Romeo Lucas García y del
General José Efraín Ríos Montt, respectivamente.

Como sucedió en otros casos, a 6 años de la primera demanda, la investigación por parte del Ministerio Público no ha avanzado pese a haberse presentado más de cien testigos y testigas de masacres ocurridas en 23 comunidades, comprobando que no existe voluntad política del sistema de justicia y del gobierno para castigar a los responsables de estos delitos.

En relación con la aplicación de la justicia, tampoco se han cumplido las sentencias dictadas por la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en los casos Plan de Sánchez, Panel Blanca, Niños de la Calle, Bámaca Velásquez, Maritza Urrutia, Carpio Nicolle, ni los acuerdos amistosos alcanzados en la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos
por los casos Irma Flaquer y Dos Erres, entre otros.

En su último informe sobre Guatemala, la Alta Comisionada de Derechos Humanos de las Naciones Unidas declara que la impunidad ha sido reiteradamente señalada por los mecanismos y organizaciones internacionales, regionales y nacionales de derechos humanos como una de las mayores amenazas al libre ejercicio de los derechos humanos.

ESPAÑA: HABRÁ INVESTIGACIÓN

En 1999, Rigoberta Menchú interpuso una denuncia ante la justicia española por genocidio, terrorismo y torturas, amparándose en el principio de Jurisdicción Universal.

En 2005, el Tribunal Constitucional español estableció que en la legislación española se instaura un principio de jurisdicción universal absoluto, por lo que la justicia española tiene competencia para investigar y juzgar, entre otros delitos, el genocidio cometido en Guatemala contra el pueblo Maya. La comisión rogatoria que llegará en junio realizará las diligencias correspondientes. En particular, tomará las declaraciones de los imputados presentes en el país, los cuales ya han sido citados por un juez guatemalteco.

SIGUE LA VIOLENCIA POLÍTICA

Mientras desde 2004 el Estado de Guatemala ha logrado mejorar su imagen ante la comunidad internacional, reconociendo oficialmente su responsabilidad por una mínima proporción de las violaciones a derechos humanos cometidas durante el conflicto armado interno, la impunidad se ha mantenido en gran medida intacta. Amparándose en esta impunidad, la violencia política está en aumento constante: los ataques contra activistas de derechos humanos, por ejemplo, han tenido una progresión constante, hasta dispararse en el 2005, con un aumento de 46% en relación con el 2004.

En particular, son sistemáticos los ataques (amenazas, actos intimidatorios, acoso y, en algunos casos, ataques fatales) contra aquellos que han prestado sus testimonios a la justicia guatemalteca y en contra de aquellos que les han brindado acompañamiento de tipo legal u otro. A pesar de que la gran mayoría de estos ataques haya sido denunciada a las autoridades competentes, no se ha identificado o procesado a casi ninguno de sus responsable. Por esta razón se teme especialmente por la seguridad de las personas que presten testimonios ante la comisión española.

It's ironic that fairly traded Maya gold is in the news today, because that's probably as far as it's possible to be from the 'Maya gold' news story that is usually in the news: see the story about Sipakapa and the exploitation of gold reserves in Guatemala at the Marlin mine.

The leftfield contribution on the exploitation of Guatemalan gold is all about chocolate. In the Observer there was a piece today 28-05-2006 about the case of Green & Blacks (recently bought by Cadbury) and its organic and fairly traded Maya Gold chocolate.

Definitely worth a read, it's interesting that they are based in Belize and characterise the Guatemalan experience of fairtrade organic as being all about pesticides, growing citrus fruit and international exploitation. Anyone got any contributions? The Fairtrade 2004 conference report (in Spanish) by Rights Action, Care Guatemala, Oxfam and the Cooperacion Espanola is certainly a great starting point to the debate.

It is certainly interesting though, to hear more about Craig Sams's experience and his ideas for changing the Fairtrade model. I can't help thinking that an insight into the human stories behind such human ideas can only help our understanding.

CAIG, the organisation that coordinates international accompaniment in Guatemala has just published (May 2006) a report on issues in human rights that make up the heart of its current work. The report focuses on two cases in particular, on the Plan de Sanchez massacre and the genocide case presented in Spain by Nobel laureate, Rigoberta Menchu.

The report underlines the current concern that in a climate where threats and intimidation against human rights defenders are on the increase in Guatemala, impunity for those responsible for human rights abuses now and in the past continues.

However, the report also looks to the future, and in particular points to two opportunities for Guatemala and especially its government, to demonstrate its will to begin to reddress the imbalance. First, is by implementing the international ruling granting compensation to the victims of the Plan de Sanchez massacre. And second, is by cooperating with the Spanish investigation into Rigoberta Menchu's case of genocide, terrorism and torture in Guatemala in the 1980's.

The report is summarised in Spanish below:

You can see the full report in Spanish here. This report is currently being translated into English. As soon as it's published we will post it here.

UPDATE: Here is the English introduction to the report provided by NISGUA:

Coordination of International Accompaniment in Guatemala Observation Report, May 2006

Accompanying Human Rights Defenders in the Struggle Against Impunity in Guatemala

The Coordination of International Accompaniment in Guatemala (CAIG) is a collaboration between ten accompaniment groups from nine countries:

- Acompañamiento de Austria (ADA), Austria;
- Cadena para un Retorno Acompañado (CAREA e.V.), Germany;
- Collectif Guatemala, France;
- Guatemala Solidarity Network (GSN), Great Britain;
- Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network (BtS), Canada;
- Mellemamerika Komiteen (MAK), Denmark;
- Movimiento Sueco por la Reconciliació n (Swefor), Sweden;
- Peace Watch Switzerland (PWS), Switzerland;
- Projet Accompagnement Québec-Guatemala (PAQG), Canada;
- Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA), USA.

Our mission is to improve the human rights situation in Guatemala by providing a dissuasive, international presence and impartial observation to at-risk human rights defenders.

Since 2000, over 275 of our volunteers have accompanied human rights defenders working to end impunity in Guatemala. In recent years, we have observed that while the Guatemalan government has publicly accepted responsibility for the human rights violations committed during the internal armed conflict, and thus improved its image in the eyes of the international community, the level of impunity in Guatemala nonetheless remains alarmingly high.

This impunity is not only the result of institutional inefficiency in the judicial system, but is perpetuated by systematic attacks on individuals fighting to end impunity by presenting testimony, providing legal aid and/or carrying out other forms of support to witnesses in legal cases. Furthermore, Guatemala's official response to these attacks has been insufficient: of the 260 attacks reported by anti-impunity activists between 1997 and 2005, the Guatemalan authorities have failed to identify or prosecute any of the perpetrators.

CAIG has observed that advances made to end impunity in Guatemala have been a result of the courage and determination of those struggling against impunity and not a result of local authorities upholding the Rule of Law. This is significant given that the majority of such activists are farmers from isolated and impoverished indigenous communities with little or no access to State institutions such as the judicial system.

In this context, two new opportunities exist for the Guatemalan government to demonstrate its political will to end impunity:

1. To comply with the reparation sentence passed down by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to the survivors of the massacre in Plan de Sanchez, Rabinal, Baja Verapaz. This case was first presented to the Inter-American Human Rights Commission in 1996 and was later included in the cases of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity presented by the Association for Justice and Reconciliation (AJR).

2. To collaborate with the Spanish Commission as it investigates, according to Universal Jurisdiction, charges of genocide, terrorism and torture originally presented by Rigoberta Menchu Tum before the Spanish Judicial System in 1999. The Spanish Commission will be visiting Guatemala between June and July 2006.

Given the political and moral importance of these legal cases, and considering the longstanding history of impunity in Guatemala, CAIG is greatly concerned for the safety of individuals and groups involved in the struggle for justice in Guatemala. We are particularly concerned for the safety of individuals testifying before the Spanish Investigative Commission in June and July.

As CAIG, we reaffirm our commitment to provide international accompaniment to human rights defenders in the struggle against impunity in Guatemala and will continue to report on their situation throughout the coming months.

The Mesoamerican Food Security Early Warning System
has recently (15-05-2006) published an update on the current food
security situation in Guatemala since Hurricane Stan. The information
from MFSEWS makes special reference to the XVIII Central American
Climate Outlook Forum held in Belize from April 18-21, 2006.

This has led the National Institute of Seismology, Volcanology, Meteorology, and Hydrology (INSIVUMEH)
to warn in its latest report (24-05-2006) that above normal cyclonic
activity is 80% more likely in the Atlantic region in 2006.

In particular, the current concerns include that the planting of this
year's crops will be affected by lack of suitable drained land for this
purpose. A worry is also the high cost of fuel and relative high cost
of basic food stuffs. In the UK, the plight of Guatemalans more than
six months on from Stan has been picked up by AlertNet and to a lesser extent The Guardian.

A Radical Activist Network conference, supported by War on Want.

1pm-7pm, Saturday 15th July (3rd Floor, University of London Union, Malet Street, London WC1). Featuring Oscar Olivera, Spokesperson for the Coalition in Defense of Water and Life in Cochabamba, Bolivia.

Plus Hilary Wainwright, Red Pepper
Andy Higginbottom, Frontline Latin America
Sue Branford, chair of the Latin America Bureau
Nick Buxton, Fundacion Solon, Bolivia
Paul Chatterton, Kiptik (Zapatista solidarity network)
and others to be confirmed

Whether it be indigenous rights movements, people fighting neoliberal economic policies or US domination of the continent, or the struggle for land and work rights, social movements are now embedded in the political landscape across Latin America. In Bolivia, popular mobilisation over the last six years has seen its electoral expression in the victory for Evo Morales and the Movement towards Socialism (MAS in its Spanish initials). This conference aims to examine how social movements in Latin America are organised, what they've won and their different relationships with the growing number of left leaning governments in the continent.

Oscar Olivera is spokesperson for the Coalition in Defense of Water and Life, ('La Coordinadora'), which was at the forefront of a popular uprising in Cochabamba in 2000 against US multinational Bechtel who had taken over their water systems as an IMF-imposed condition for Bolivian debt relief.

GSN should be there too- watch this space for more information.

Guatemala's government said for the first time on Thursday (18-05-06)
it wanted to
investigate the disappearances of some 45,000 civilians during a bloody
civil war and hoped to prosecute those responsible. As human rights
activist, Ruth del Valle says, let's hope this isn't just another
agreement that stays on paper. Read more about the agreement here…

The issue of violence against women is being forced up the political
agenda, of a seemingly reluctant Guatemalan political establishment. In
a recent meeting (18-05-2006) of the UN Committee on Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Guatemala was required to present its report and answer questions from leading international experts.

Maria
Gabriela Nuñez, Minister of the Presidential Secretariat for Women
(SEPREM), who introduced the country report and fielded questions from
the Committee’s experts, said: “There
were some gaps, indeed, large gaps, especially in the legislative
sphere, particularly with regard to violence against women.”

(Interesting expanation
for why many members of Congress have been blocking reference to
domestic violence in proposed legislation).

In terms of sexual health:

The Guatemalan government's response was:

In other words, blame Congress. Ex-GSN member Hannah Roberts wrote a recent article for the Lancet
on the need for a coordinated approach to sexual health policy in
Guatemala.

The UN Committee considered an extensive range of issues,
far more than we can include in this blog post. So for more info: read the full report from the meeting. For more information on the issue of femicide, the International Federation of Human Rights, published (19-04-2006) an in-depth report
in Spanish on the issue in Guatemala and Mexico. The report makes a
number of key recommendations, and is another indicator or
international pressure on Guatemala to take action on violence against
women.

UPDATE: This recent investigation in Guatemalan paper El Peridico was published (5th June 2006) in the death of Claudina Velasquez.

This follows a week where international pressure was built with the Washington Office for Latin America (WOLA) succeding to get a letter
to US State Department Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere
Affairs, Thomas Shannon, with more than 100 U.S. Members of Congress
are expressing deep concern for the brutal killings of women in
Guatemala and urge the Department of State to publicly support efforts
for the protection of women and human rights defenders in that country.