It's great to see the new initiative from Oxfam to begin blogging about the work they do. Harriet Penrose, a Research Manager for Oxfam has just started to blog about her trip to Guatemala. It'll be interesting to read more about Oxfam's work in the country. Here's to more UK NGOs following Oxfam's lead and sharing more information and sharing their personal learning experiences.
The Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA) in the U.S. has just launched its new website at www.nisgua.org. It is a massive resource and huge boost for all those looking to support solidarity initiatives with Guatemala. It's really worth checking out- going in depth into issues and campaigns (impunity, land rights, militarisation and trade and development) and explaining in more detail what international accompaniment is.
One take on how to do microcredit for women in Guatemala from Namaste Direct based in California. There are many organisations running microcredit intiatives in Guatemala, amongst others Rights Action and the Instituto para la Superación de la Miseria Urbana (ISMUGUA) were two I learnt about. For more information on microfinance, check out the UN's work in this area.
There have recently been a number of attacks against the press. For anyone trying to make sense of the repressive and intimidatory forces at work in Guatemala the picture is a confused one. In this morning's Guardian (AP source) was a story about various attacks on journalists in Guatemala. In particular the article mentioned:
AP reported as part of background to this incident that: “The radio station has been threatened repeatedly for reporting on a tax evasion lawsuit involving Avicola Villalobos, one of Central America's largest agricultural conglomerates”. (not mentioned in Prensa Libre's article) Avicola Villalobos (poultry production) is another venture, one of the many of the Multi Inversiones holding company controlled by Dionisio Gutierrez”grandson of the founder”and Juan Luis Bosch, his cousin.
Bosch and Gutierrez have been legally challenged for tax evasion and money laundering by their uncle (Arturo Gutierrez) in a long running battle for influence (explained by Albedrio) in one of the wealthiest and most influential holding companies in Central America. In such a poisoned atmosphere, indisputable facts are few, and accusations many. Who's knows who was behind this shooting? And with impunity still widespread who knows whether Aguilar's attackers will be brought to justice?
Radio has long played a vital role in communications in Guatemala given widespread illiteracy and weak infrastructure across the country. This blog has highlighted recent intimidatory behaviour towards community radio stations, allegedly by Government and major commercial radio players.
Despite this difficult context project's do exist that support the vital role that community radio can play for local communities across Guatemala, for example Cultural Survival's Guatemala Radio Project and Instituto Guatemalteco de Educación Radiofónica (IGER).
For a better idea of the vast range of radio available in Guatemala (many of which are available online) click here for more information.
The Guatemalan army and police, along with members of the US Drugs Enforcement Agency conducted a surprise anti-drugs operation in the Ixcan, El Quiche recently (21-08-2006). With the details emerging, local groups and human rights organisations have denounced the heavy handed nature of the operation given the history of the military's repressive record in the region in the recent past. Any inappropriate behaviour from the military has been denied by the Government, including President Oscar Berger.
Guatemalan newspaper El Periodico has been covering the story with an intial report about the DEA involvement and then another describing the local reaction to it. The role of the DEA has also been a point of controversy with the Carlos Vielman, Interior Minister, not specifying how many DEA agents there are in the country.
The following is a statement in Spanish released by local groups from Playa Grande, Ixcán, El Quiché (21-08-2006).
El Concejo Municipal, organizaciones sociales y la sociedad civil en general del Municipio de Playa Grande, Ixcán, El Quiché, denunciamos la ocupación militar de la comunidad de retornados Ixtahuacán Chiquito, de este municipio, de las 11:00 de la mañana hasta las 15:00 horas, y expresamos nuestro rechazo a la manera sorpresiva y prepotente como se realizó este operativo militar, en el que participaron 7 helicópteros y tres aviones del ejército.
El dÃa de hoy aproximadamente a las 11:00 de la mañana siete helicópteros militares aterrizaron en el centro de Ixtahuacán Chiquito y desembarcaron miembros del ejército fuertemente armados y con la cara pintada de negro.
Seguidamente ocuparon el campo de fútbol y rodearon la escuela, impidiendo la salida de los niños y niñas que se encontraban en clases. Miembros del ejército de manera violenta ingresaron a humildes viviendas, encañonando a las mujeres y se apoderaron de herramientas de trabajo. Acto seguido iniciaron con estas herramientas excavaciones en un centro arqueológico ubicado cerca del área de esta comunidad, supuestamente en busca de armas. Hasta las tres de la tarde aviones y helicópteros del ejército sobrevolaron las comunidades de Fronterizo 10 de Mayo, Los Ãngeles y Cuarto Pueblo, colindantes con el estado de Chiapas, México.
Estos hechos provocaron gran alarma en las familias, quienes durante el conflicto armado interno fueron vÃctimas de la polÃtica de tierra arrasada. Mujeres y niños huyeron despavoridos de sus casas buscando refugio en las montañas, al recordar lo que habÃan vivido durante el conflicto armado interno. Hasta el momento se reportan tres jóvenes
desaparecidos. De la misma manera pobladores de la aldea Fronterizo 10 de Mayo huyeron a las montañas, y algunos cruzaron la frontera mexicana, abandonando sus pertenencias y animales.
Este operativo fue similar al realizado el dÃa 10 de agosto en la Finca Chailá, de este mismo municipio, donde, de acuerdo al informe que vecinos del lugar dieron a la autoridad municipal, helicópteros del ejército aterrizaron en el lugar, acto seguido soldados y personas encapuchadas irrumpieron en las viviendas de los trabajadores de la finca.
Señalaron los afectados que sus casas fueron allanadas y saqueadas por miembros del ejército. Ante estos hechos los abajo firmantes expresamos nuestro rechazo a estos hechos violentos que atentan contra la tranquilidad de las familias y sus derechos civiles, poniendo en peligro la vida e integridad fÃsica de los habitantes de la comunidad especialmente de mujeres, ancianos, niños y niñas. No estamos en contra de la lucha contra el crimen organizado, pero sà rechazamos las acciones intimidatorios y violentas contra la población más vulnerable.
Hacemos un llamado a la ProcuradurÃa de Derechos Humanos a que realice una investigación sobre estos hechos, y que mantenga la vigilancia sobre el respeto a los derechos humanos, velando porque el ejército no ejerza funciones que le corresponden al poder judicial y la policÃa nacional civil, tal como lo establece el Acuerdo sobre el Fortalecimiento del Poder Civil y Función del Ejército en una Sociedad Democrática.
Marcos RamÃrez, Alcalde Municipal
Pastoral Social del Ixcán
Asociación Centro de Apoyo en Justicia Penal y Resolución de Conflictos
Proyecto de Salud Mental Puente de Paz
Asociación de Mujeres Mamá MaquÃn
Servicios JurÃdicos y Sociales (SERJUS)
Fundación Guillermo Toriello
Comité Europeo Formación y Agricultura (CEFA)
Asociación Integral de Productores Orgánicos de Ixcán (ASIPOI)
(Aderenco)
The following is a statement released by CALDH denoucing the military operation:
Es sintomático que este tipo de operativos se realicen en la región de Ixcán, que fue una de las más golpeadas durante la guerra y donde millares de personas están pendientes de que se haga justicia por el Genocidio ocurrido en el paÃs.
Las comunidades no tienen por qué sufrir las consecuencias de operativos militares que responden a la necesidad de este gobierno de presentar resultados positivos ante el gobierno de Estados Unidos en su supuesta lucha contra el crimen organizado y narcotráfico y que sólo consiguen intimidar y generar terror en una población que intenta sobrevivir diariamente a los altos Ãndices de pobreza, desigualdad y exclusión.
Ante estos hechos, CALDH EXIGE:
¢ Que el gobierno cese inmediatamente este tipo de operativos militares y que realice una investigación seria sobre las violaciones a los derechos humanos que se han cometido en los últimos dÃas en contra de las comunidades.
¢ La depuración de las fuerzas de seguridad que siguen actuando al margen de la legalidad que dicta el Estado de Derecho en una sociedad democrática.
¢ Que no se siga poniendo de pretexto el combate al crimen organizado y al narcotráfico para pasar por sobre la dignidad de las personas que habitan las comunidades, que siguen sufriendo el abandono de las supuestas polÃticas sociales de los gobiernos y que sólo tienen de tiempo en tiempo la presencia de un Estado militarizado.
Episode 7 of documentary series 'Entremosle a Guate' entitled 'La justicia con rostro de mujer' has just been posted on the internet. This focuses on the work of two women working in the Guatemalan criminal justice system. Glenda Monroy works in the Fiscalia de la Mujer and Carmela Curup, the first indigenous woman to qualify as a lawyer. Cast against a background of rising violence against women, the programme manages to illuminate the issue with the courageous example of these two women.
Violence against women continues to get sporadic publicity in the Guatemalan press some less, some more insightful. There's also a clip of the BBC documentary 'Killer's Paradise' showing Norma Cruz, a Guatemalan activist for women's rights posted on the internet recently. Last month Amnesty International produced another report on the issue reiterating the fact that the violence is continuing to rise.
An article in today's Guardian continues the discussion on adoption from overseas. Kate Hilpern talks to the families who have adopted transnationally, in particular to the children themselves who've now grown up. The article starts with the following question:
But as her three daughters start to grow up, she's not so sure that “rescuing” children, and bringing them up thousands of miles from their roots, is always the answer. “It's not that I'm anti-adoption or that I regret adopting. But I believe more and more that we need to improve the situation for people – for women in particular – in developing countries like Guatemala,” says Aldridge, who supports a number of community projects there.”
Usually this debate on transnational adoption is not led by those who've been adopted themselves. It's interesting to hear how important it is to be able to share experiences with others who've been through a similar situation. For information on the Transnational and Transracial Adoption Group, visit www.ttag.org.uk
Those who underestimate Guatemala's love of fried chicken do so at their peril. It's led to the hard-wiring of the custom of taking fried chicken with you when visiting loved-ones abroad. It explains why Guatemala consumes more chicken than any other Central American neighbour. Now this love of chicken is partly the cause of the bad taste CAFTA is currently leaving in the mouth of Guatemalan officials.
There's an interesting post from El Blogador in El Blog Diabloglico on the latest reactions to the introduction of CAFTA in Guatemala with President Oscar Berger accusing the US of dumping chicken on the country's market. Cuba's Press Agency Prensa Latina has the article with the quote from Oscar Berger in English. While the story rumbles on in the Guatemala Press- see for example El Periodico. In an editorial piece, Prensa Libre's message to the Guatemalan government was: get used to the new CAFTA reality- oh and cheap chicken is great for consumers.
It will be interesting to see how Guatemalans in positions of power react to CAFTA who currently believe they can gain from the much lauded opportunities of CAFTA. Prensa Libre's CAFTA special (still pushed from it's home page) is a case in point, and is actually a striking example of the incredibly biased reporting on CAFTA in the Guatemalan press up to now. In a wholely unscientific estimation, I'd guess 98% of the content of the publication is strongly in favour of CAFTA.
El Blogador's article also refers to the long running Pollo Campero* case involving a law suit between cousins and Guatemalan business magnates, Dionisio Gutiérrez Mayorga (who also dabbles in television) and Juan Luis Bosch and their uncle Juan Arturo Gutierrez. The long running case has been largely avoided by the Guatemalan press. A couple of weeks ago a Miami judge threw out the case after more than seven years pending. Juan Arturo Gutierrez's lawyers say they'll take the case to Guatemala.
Written by Alan Mendelsohn and Nadine Pequeneza, aired on Canadian television's series Turning Points of History in 2001- “A Coup: Made In America” (Barna-Alper) is a documentary made about the CIA's involvement in the downfall of Jacobo Arbenz's government in Guatemala in 1954. You can now watch it on Google Video as it has just been posted in the last couple of days by Quintus (read this article on the documentary from Quintus's blog Hunahpu Ixbalanque in Spanish).
Quintus makes the point that the significance of 1954 is still not widely enough understood in Guatemala in its true historical context. If you take a book like 'Breve Historia Contemporánea de Guatemala' by Jorge Luján Muñoz, part of the academic establishment in Guatemala you can see Quintus's point. Luján Muñoz only refers to the CIA involvement in a footnote in his chapter on the downfall of Arbenz. And finishes the piece implying that the Arbenz government failed due to internal factors:
Interesting to see Stephen Schlesinger interviewed in the documentary. Schlesinger co-wrote with Stephen Kinzer one of the widely considered classics on the CIA intervention in Guatemala in 1954 – Bitter Fruit – The Story of the American Coup in Guatemala. You can see Stephen Kinzer talking about Guatemala in 1954 and his latest book “Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq.” on Democracy Now! (May 2006).
Those words from Vice President Richard Nixon to Carlos Castillo Armas, then President of Guatemala, are still striking for their duplicity and hypocrisy. What happened in Guatemala over 50 years ago, still resonates with students of U.S. foreign policy in the interceding years. This example of the U.S. government deposing a democratically elected government for straight-forward economic self-interest finds echoes in many, many other parts of the world since -right up to the present day. The big difference with the US role in Guatemala in 1954 is that the 'American coup' is a matter of public record and can no longer be spun in any other way.
Yes, it's official: the US does not always promote democracy and liberty beyond its borders.
A few days ago we were approached by Antony Melville from UK pressure group Rainforest Saver. They are promoting a groundbreaking method developed with farmers in areas of Central America affected by slash and burn. The technique was established by British ecologist Mike Hands over a period of more than 20 years working in Honduras and Costa Rica. The technique is alley cropping using Inga trees and provides the nutrients necessary to rejuvenate land rendered unproductive from slash and burn.
One of the many advantages of alley cropping with inga trees over alternatives is that it's a totally organic method. The Inga trees produce a mulch that smothers weeds, but allows stronger plant species such as maize to break through. With less weeds, the amount of land a farmer can cultivate is increased. The trees themselves are pruned producing firewood for farmers.
The story of how this has come about is told in a recent article (Feb 2005) in The Ecologist by Daniel Elkan. There has also been an article in the Guardian in April 2004. So far, more than 4,000 farmers have been shown plots of Inga alley-cropping at demonstration farms in Honduras and Rainforest Saver are keen to involve farmers from further afield including Guatemala to see for themselves the benefits of working with Inga trees in this way. We will be helping to spread greater awareness of this technique in Guatemala in the coming months.
Photo to the left shows Rueben Mendoza on the edge of his Inga alley plot in front of his second maize crop in succeeding years on a previously unproductive site.
Most impressive of all are the comments from farmers whose lives have been changed by this new way of farming the land. As quoted from The Ecologist article: “Victor Coronado from Atlantida in northern Honduras was one of the first [farmers to get involved]. His initial response was sceptical. 'The first thing I thought was that it doesn't make sense to plant corn or beans under the trees,' Coronado recalls. However, as Hands was only asking him to give up a small part of his land, not large enough to risk his livelihood, he agreed to give it a try.
Six years on, Coronado stands surrounded by proof that Hands' technique works. Where there used to be grass and weeds, tall, leafy maize plants now rise above his head. In a field nearby, alley-cropped pepper plants are flourishing, while in Coronado's kitchen there is plenty of the vanilla that he grew last year.
More than 30 farmers have adopted the scheme, each with a plot of Inga alley-cropping located only metres from their home. With the crops so close by, they can be more easily guarded from wild animals, and the rest of the family members are more easily able to help in the field. 'When I go out it does not worry me now, because my wife, my daughter or a neighbour can look after the crops,' says Coronado. In fact, Coronado's wife took over the running of the pepper crop completely. After harvesting and grinding, she mixed it with cumin and sold it in the town square. 'She has made $900 for the family selling pepper,' Coronado beams. 'All of us can produce crops that are 100 per cent organic. If more farmers get involved, between us we could even sell some of the crops abroad.'”
The above picture from Google Earth shows the depletion of the rainforest around Lake Peten Itza in northern Guatemala. In Honduras, gradually alley cropping is growing in popularity. However, extra resources need to be found to make sure there are enough Inga seeds to meet the growing demand. Extra resources could also help publicise this incredibly simple, yet effective technique which can impact on so many people's lives.
You can download Mike Hands final report to the European Union on alley cropping from June 2002
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