Ríos Montt escapes again

The wheels of justice in Guatemala turn so slowly that they often appear not to move at all.

(Then again, maybe they really aren't moving.)

Guatemala throws out charges against ex-dictator

Guatemala City, Jan 30 (Reuters) - A former dictator, accused of human rights atrocities during Guatemala's civil war, will not stand trial for instigating a fatal riot three years ago, a court decided on Monday.

Former strongman Efrain Rios Montt, along with 16 of his supporters, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and inciting followers to riot in July 2003 to protest a legal ruling blocking his candidacy for president.

The court dropped all charges against Rios Montt after the public prosecutors' office said it had insufficient evidence to proceed. Raul Manchame, who was Guatemala's chief of police at the time of the street clashes, will have to stand trial, while the other 15 supporters were charged with minor crimes, prosecution lawyer Walter Robles told Reuters.

During the riot, supporters, many wearing ski masks and wielding clubs, smashed shop windows and held office workers hostage in a daylong rampage known in Guatemala as "Black Thursday."

Radio reporter Hector Ramirez died of a heart attack while running from stick-wielding rightists, some firing pistols, who were demonstrating in support of the general's Guatemalan Republican Front party, or FRG.

Robles, who represents Ramirez's family, said he will appeal the decision.

"This was a political failure, not a legal one," Robles said. "There is sufficient evidence that Rios Montt was the intellectual author of the disturbance in 2003." Rios Montt was finally allowed to run in the 2003 election, but he was soundly beaten, with many voters turned off by perceived corruption of his party.

On Monday, a small scuffle broke out in the courtroom between local journalists and the general's bodyguards when reporters tried to question Rios Montt after the trial.

Rights groups accuse Rios Montt of ordering the slaughter of tens of thousands of civilians during his 1982-1983 rule, the bloodiest period of Guatemala's 36-year civil war.

Two lawsuits, one in Guatemala and one in Spain, have been filed against Rios Montt on charges related to the anti-rebel crackdown in the 1980s, but they are moving slowly in the courts.

Guatemala's civil war killed an estimated 200,000 people, mainly Maya Indians, before peace accords were signed in 1996.

This article was forwarded by the fine folks at NISGUA.

Tags: Guatemala, Montt, Black, Thursday, FRG

A Broken System

Years ago I was the in-country representative for NISGUA, the Network in Solidarity with the people of Guatemala. Part of my responsibilities was to obtain travel visas for the Guatemalan activists who would be participating in our U.S. speaking tour.

One of the participants was a young indigenous woman who was a leader in her community and the Guatemalan organization CONIC (National Coordinating Committee of Indigenous People and Campesinos).

I went with her to the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City, in order to accompany her through the exhausting and intimidating visa application process.
During her interview I explained to the bureaucratic face behind the bullet-proof glass that the NISGUA speaking tour was event meant to raise awareness of the struggles facing Guatemalans and the need to work together in support of the peace process and human rights.

I also mentioned that she would be spending about two weeks sharing her personal story with schools, churches, universities and solidarity groups. And lastly I provided the paperwork which detailed her itinerary and demonstrated that all of her costs would be covered by NISGUA.
Her visa was, of course, denied.

The official explanation was that she didn't have the sufficient financial resources to guarantee that she would want to return to Guatemala. In other words: she was too poor to be trusted.

The basic assumption of the U.S. Embassy is that unless you have mucho dinero in the bank, your own house and car, and a very nice salary... you cannot be expected to resist the great temptation to stay in the "promised land".

Thanks to letters from influential American politicians who support NISGUA, the U.S. Consul General agreed to meet with us and eventually reversed the decision. Even then, he threatened me by saying: "We are going to allow her to travel to the U.S., but when the speaking tour is over she has to immediately present herself at this Embassy, or it will be a black mark in your file."

Obviously we complied... so to this day I have no idea what a "black mark" means or even what file he was referring to. (My guess: it can't be a good thing.)

This lengthy introduction to the following article was meant simply to raise two questions:

1. What do you think the chances are that your average Guatemalan (ie: one without the support of powerful U.S. politicians and International Solidarity organizations) can obtain a U.S. tourist visa... much less a temporary work visa?

2. Would that perhaps explain why so many people are forced to immigrate to the States by paying their life savings to smugglers, facing thieves and rapists, crossing a deadly desert, and then living in the constant fear of deportation?

I encourage you read to the following article which tells the heart-breaking stories of men, women, and children who are victims of our broken immigration system. This is the first in a two-part series.

A Broken System
by Kim Salinas and Cheryl Distaso
January 26, 2006

On alternate days the students at Harris Bilingual Elementary School place their hands on their hearts and say the Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish: “Juro lealtad a la bandera de los Estados Unidos,” they chant. Half of them, including Alicia, come from homes where Spanish is spoken, half hail from homes where English is spoken. All pledge loyalty to “one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Alicia’s parents also feel an allegiance to the United States, which became their home after they fled the violence of war-torn Guatemala in 1988. That allegiance adds to the hurt they feel about the recent denial of their asylum application, which has been pending for more than ten years. The war is over, they were told. You can go home. Home to them, and to their U.S.-citizen children, is the United States. But the law does not permit them to stay.

Our nation appears neither united nor indivisible as we debate over immigrants and immigration. As problems worsen in our nation, many seek a scapegoat, and as the saying goes in Spanish, “The chickens on top let their droppings fall on the ones below.”

Instead of holding those in power accountable, we shift the blame down to the victims. The immigrant becomes the culprit for everything from urban sprawl to declining family values. Meanwhile, immigrants and their families become more and more confused by public scorn from a nation that they love, that they help build with their labor and make strong with their loyalty.

The truth is that our immigration system is so dysfunctional that it encourages noncompliance. The current system is incompatible with the needs of families and of the U.S. economy, and a strengthening of existing laws will only lead to more violations. What is needed is comprehensive reform of the entire system.

Please read the entire article

Kim Salinas is an immigration attorney and a volunteer with Fuerza Latina. Cheryl Distaso is the coordinator for the Center for Justice, Peace, and Environment.

Tags: Guatemala, immigration, United States, Embassy, Visa

Nisgua: Nueva Linda news

Here's an urgent news bulletin sent out by NISGUA concerning the Nueva Linda cattle ranch in Camperico, Guatemala... the scene of an ongoing conflict between the campesino workers and the ranch's brutal owners.

Dear NISGUA friends,

We had news today that 4 people from the community at the Finca Nueva Linda have been wounded by the private security forces of the finca owners.

There has been a lot of tension at Nueva Linda since the disappearance of local leader Héctor Reyes two years ago. The Fernández family that owns the Finca Nueva Linda is believed to be behind the disappearance, and since that time local campesinos have been occupying the finca to pressure for an investigation.

Since last night there was high tension at Nueva Linda, amongst reports that the private security forces of the finca had tried to poison the community's water supply. Today, the private security forces opened fire on those occupying the finca, wounding Roberto Gonzalez, Macario Gomez, Bernardo Guillén and one other unidentified person. Police later arrived at the scene but did not make any arrests. We have been busy today calling the Guatemalan and U.S. government to express our concern, and will let you know further details of the incident soon.

Andrew de Sousa, NISGUA

Tags: Guatemala, Champerico, Nueva Linda, NISGUA, Finca

Where's Waldo?

I know what you're thinking.

First the Bush administration admits to spying on U.S. citizens by using the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on private telephone calls and email...

... and then Rob suddenly disappears, his blog eerily quiet.

Well, fret not. I'm not being held as an enemy combatant at Gitmo. (Not yet, anyway.)

Rather, my prolonged silence is due to a family emergency. For health reasons my father has to abandon his beloved New Orleans and return to New York, where he can live closer to his family. (Also beloved, I should add.)

The move will be a fairly complicated one. So I, as the spouseless and childless sibling, volunteered to travel South and help my Dad make the transition back home.

Which means, obviously, that I have had to postpone my trip back to Guatemala. Thankfully my coworkers have been incredibly understanding and wonderfully supportive. Also, through the miracle of modern technology, I've been able to "telecommute" each morning, and update the Incidencia Democrática homepage from the comfort of our living room couch.

The only difficulty, in fact, has been finding time to work my homepage. It'll probably be hit-and-miss for awhile. I apologize for that, and ask for your patience. Hopefully everything should be back to normal (as close as this website ever gets to "normal" anyway) in roughly one month.

Here's what the near future looks like:

Jan. 24th: Travel to New Orleans... help Dad pack & etc.

Feb. 15th: Return to Guatemala City.

I share this information with you in the hope that some of you will email me occasionally to remind me where the heck I am. Because I'm fairly certain that I'll be waking up every morning asking myself that very question!

Tags: Guatemala, New York, New Orleans, Dad, Incidencia Democrática

Do we have to CAFTA?

"Successful CAFTA-DR implementation is critical to the broader U.S. policy goals for the Americas of strengthening democratic governance, expanding economic opportunity, and investing in people."

That little bit of sweet-sounding fluff is part of recent a declaration by USTR (United States Trade Representative) spokesman Stephen Norton.

The truth, however, is that CAFTA is a behind-closed-doors deal brokered by an economic elite in the U.S. with the economic elite of six developing nations. It guarantees agribusiness, pharmaceutical companies and other major corporations access to expanded markets, extended protections and extensive supplies of cheap labor.

Another of CAFTA's more nefarious aspects is now coming to light: the push by Bush & Co. to impose a regimen of strict intellectual property laws in the other, nominally sovereign, signatory countries.

Which raises the following questions for me:

How is denying the sick access to affordable generic medicine considered "investing in people"?

How is punishing the underprivileged for selling cheap copies of dvds on the street considered "investing in people"?

How is threatening developing nations with cuts in development aid and loss of export benefits considered "investing in people"?

CAFTA is investing in people"?!? What a load of candy-coated bullshit.

Bush using CAFTA to expand corporate rights in Central America

by Tom Ricker and Burke Stansbury

What does tightening intellectual property laws have to do with “free” trade? That’s the question many people in Central America and the Dominican Republic are asking as the United States continues to insist on dramatic changes to constitutional laws in the six countries involved in the US-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).

As if the agreement itself weren’t bad enough for the region –CAFTA will hurt small farmers, worsen workers' rights, and lead to environmental degradation, among other negative effects– the US is manipulating the implementation process to demand even further concessions by the six countries involved.

The Bush administration continues to demand that intellectual property rights protections be tightened in the other CAFTA countries before they can be certified to join the agreement. The U.S. government is criticizing Guatemala’s pending intellectual property law for not being strict enough, thereby using CAFTA implementation to tighten restrictions on drug patents - benefiting pharmaceutical corporations but certainly not poor people in need of affordable drugs.

One country has achieved the necessary reforms necessary for implementation: El Salvador. In December the National Assembly rammed through 14 constitutional changes without any substantial debate, leading to the eruption of massive protests by informal sector market vendors a few weeks later. The reforms will impose fines and even jail time for those who sell and purchase pirated goods, thereby destroying the livelihood of many poor Salvadorans who depend on the informal economy.

Read the entire article!

Tags: Guatemala, CAFTA, Bush, Medicine, Central America

CAFTA on hold

The January 1st deadline for the implementation of CAFTA - the Central American Free Trade Agreement - has come and, obviously, gone. Yet the accord still faces some major hurdles before it takes effect...

Here are excerpts from a recent article:

Foes in Central America Stall CAFTA

By Evelyn Iritani, Times Staff Writer

Growing anti-trade sentiment in several Central American countries has held up a trade agreement with the United States that had been slated to launch Jan. 1.

Some experts said a delay could pose problems for the Central America deal, given the rising skepticism about free trade across Latin America.

CAFTA has become a hot issue in the campaign for next month's presidential election in Costa Rica, the only country that hasn't ratified the agreement, and anti-trade sentiment is running high in several countries that have yet to complete the legal changes necessary to put the trade pact in place.

Some countries are balking at the requirement that they put more teeth in their intellectual property laws.

Health activists say these changes, pushed by U.S. high-tech and pharmaceutical firms, will make it harder to get low-cost generic medicines needed to treat AIDS.

Guatemalan Vice President Eduardo Stein complained recently that U.S. pharmaceutical firms were holding up his country's CAFTA entry in an effort to force his government to make further changes to its laws.

During an interview last month with Associated Press, he said Washington seemed "only interested in our money and commodities."

He also said his government had decided to strengthen its ties with Mercosur, a regional trading bloc formed by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.

"I think the months ahead will tell the story of what the price was domestically in other countries to get CAFTA passed," said Todd Tucker, research director at Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch, an activist group in Washington critical of CAFTA. "So far, it seems pretty high."

Read the entire article

Tags: Guatemala, CAFTA, Central America, Trade, AIDS

Early Mayan writing

Yet another exciting archeological find in Guatemala...

Find: Early Maya had the write stuff

By Mica Rosenberg, Reuters

Read the entire article

Additional article:

Earliest Maya Writing Found in Guatemala

Tags: Guatemala, Maya, Glyphs, Mayan, Archeology

Mining, the World Bank and Wolfowitz

A delegation of indigenous people affected by the Glamis Gold mine in San Marcos recently met with World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz.

The following is a press release that was published following the meeting. It was mailed to me today by the Network of People in Solidarity with Guatemala, NISGUA. Unfortunately, I don't have access to the original document and the translation is a bit sketchy. Despite that, I feel that the content is important enough to post here.

Press Release on the Meeting of World Bank President Wolfowitz with Guatemalan Delegates of People Affected by Mining

On December 9th, 2005, World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz met with a delegation to discuss a controversial chemical gold mining project that has received support from International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the Bank and which is causing troubles in the region and negatively affecting the native indigenous Sipakapense people -a nation of barely 14,000- who live in San Marcos, Guatemala.

The delegation was formed by Mario Tema, traditional indigenous leader, member of the Council of Indigenous Authorities of the Western Highlands of Guatemala, former president of the Academy of Mayan Languages and the delegate of the Sipakapense people; Magali Rey Rosa, member of environmental NGO and Collective MadreSelva and of the High Level Commission on Mining; Karyn Keenan, from Friends of the Earth – Canada; Eric Holt-Gimenez of the Bank Information Center and Keith Slack of Oxfam America. Other World Bank and IFC directors and members of the Compliance Advisory Ombudsman’s office of the Bank (which conducted an independent investigation of the project) were present also.

Mr. Tema denounced the violation of his peoples and their territorial rights, stating that the mining project was imposed on them with no information or adequate consultation process, he spoke of how this project assaults their way of life, and their rejection to it, which was recently legally manifested in a consultation process, for which reason they demand:

1. That the consultation process be acknowledged and respected by the World Bank and that the Sipakapense peoples’ rejection of mining is heeded.

2. That the mining company leaves Sipacapa, withdrawing all installations and offices and ceasing any exploration on Sipacapa’s territory.

3. That, honoring its original mission to reduce poverty, the World Bank supports a development project for the people of Sipacapa that is designed with their full participation, and that doesn’t threaten their livelihood, their culture or their world vision.

4. That the World Bank guarantees that the territory, the environment and biodiversity of the Sipakapense territory will not be affected by any metal mining activity.

5. That if the above points are not met, that the World Bank withdraw its support from the Marlin project, which is owned by Canadian company Glamis Gold, known in Guatemala as Montana Exploradora, because their rights have been violated.

Magali Rey Rosa spoke of the Guatemalan government’s low regulatory capacity and inability to manage the environmental dangers posed by chemical metal mining, its lack of sensitivity to deal with the worries and rising objections of indigenous peoples, and the official and corporate use of violence as the only response to problems related to the project, that has already resulted in the death of two Guatemalans. The use of military and police forces –related to the mining project- is seen as a direct violation of Guatemala’s Peace Accords. The situation in the Western Highlands of Guatemala, where the Marlin Mine and other mining concessions are located is highly volatile, and if mining continues in the region at the current pace, it is feared that violent repression may occur in the region.

The delegates from the northern NGOs brought the WB’s Extractive Industries Review into perspective, stating that the Marlin project violates the principles drawn from it.

They delineated three possible scenarios:

1. Continue with business as usual, which would leave Guatemalans on their own, and probably lead to a violent standoff between the government and impacted peoples

2. Withdrawal of support by the World Bank, which would send a very strong message that Guatemala, is not ready for mining, but which would also leave the mining company and the Guatemalan government to do as they please:

3. The World Bank’s intervention to seek solutions to this problem before it gets worse.

After listening attentively, Mr. Wolfowitz said he is not an expert on mining, but since he has seen mines in Indonesia and Africa he can understand why people are bothered and worried. He said having oil and mineral wealth has paradoxically been a curse to many peoples.

He admitted that the bank group as a whole should have done a better job, and said he believes there are solutions. He said this case is a great challenge, and expressed interest in seeking solutions and keeping an open dialogue. The meeting was concluded with his request that we send him a proposal on how to achieve the demands listed above.

We feel satisfied because we had a positive meeting, but we are in a bind, because dialogue is great but not enough. The Marlin Mine began official operations on the 2nd of December, and as Glamis Gold reaps wealth from our lands, we could be talking for years. Will the World Bank accept our proposal and take it seriously? Will the IFC and Glamis agree to participate? Up until now we have done everything in our power to seek a peaceful solution, and we can only hope that the World Bank will use its considerable power to push for positive and speedy action to achieve our demands and defuse the volatile situation in Guatemala’s western highlands.

For more information on the Marlin project in Guatemala: www.madreselva.com.gt

Magali Rey Rosa: lamaga@intelnet.net.gt
Mario Tema: mariotema@itelgua.com

Tags: Guatemala, Glamis, Mining, World Bank, Wolfowitz

Three predictions

With every new year comes an onslaught of fortune-telling and forecasts.

I hesitate to join the throngs of the "Nostradamus among us", but I am willing to lay my reputation for divination on the line with the following three predictions:

In 2006...

1. I will begin to invent imaginary friends to accompany me during my long bouts of workaholism.

2. Coffee and chocolate will continue to play a significant role in my life.

3. Latin America will continue to seek greater political and economic independence from the United States.

While it's easier to predict the personal than the political, I have little doubt about #3. After all, the list of independent-minded Latin American leaders who oppose the Bush-league version of U.S. imperialism in the region continues to grow and grow.

Presidential candidates Michelle Bachelet of Chile and Manuel López Obrador of Mexico are leading in the opinion polls of their respective countries.

If elected, they will join leaders such as Castro of Cuba, Chávez of Venezuela, Lula of Brazil, Kirchner of Argentina, Tabaré Vázquez of Uruguay, and Evo Morales of Bolivia in taking a stand against the incessant intervention of the Bush administration, and in favor of Latin American integration.

But even in conservative, pro-business governments such as Guatemala's there are rumblings of discontent. Despite having just signed a "free trade" agreement (CAFTA) with the United States, the following article shows that Guatemala is beginning to shift its gaze from North to South:

Guatemala to Strengthen Mercosur Ties
by Juan Carlos Llorca, Associated Press

Guatemala's government -- annoyed by the delay in CAFTA's implementation and the U.S. House of Representative's approval of a wall to keep out illegal immigrants -- announced Tuesday it would seek to strengthen its relations with the Mercosur trading bloc, comprised of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.

"It is indispensable to diversify our trade and diplomatic relations so as not to depend mostly, or even worse, exclusively, on a single trade relationship," said Guatemalan Vice President, Eduardo Stein.

Last week, Stein said Guatemala would look "for other latitudes where people are more respected," a veiled reference to the U.S. House of Representative's approval of a measure to build more border fences, make illegal immigration a felony and enlist military and local police to help stop undocumented migrants. The measure must still be approved by the U.S. Senate.

Read the entire article

Tags: Guatemala, CAFTA, Latin America, Trade, Immigration

City of God

Happy New Year to all!

So how did you ring in the new year?

My folks and I decided to celebrate New Year's Eve in the traditional New York fashion: we went to an Italian restaurant for dinner and then home to watch a DVD.

(What? You thought maybe I meant that we joined the mass of humanity crammed into Times Square? No, no, no... A true New Yorker does that maybe once or twice in their lifetime, usually when friends are visiting from out-of-state. There are many better ways to spend the night than by standing on asphalt for seven hours in sub-freezing temperatures, crushed by a mob of complete strangers, while waiting for a ball to drop down a pole. We prefer to see that on tv, like everyone else.)

The movie we watched, I have to confess, wasn't your normal holiday fare. But it was moving, heartbreaking, inspiring, shocking and oddly appropriate.

"City of God" is an amazing Brazilian film that portrays the reality of youth gangs and the drug trade in the "favelas", or slum areas, that surround Rio de Janeiro. I can't recommend this film highly enough... as entertainment, as art, and as an eye-opening glance into the real-world problems that plague the sprawling cities of Latin America.

In fact, the reason why I said the film was "oddly appropriate" is because at the very moment we were watching the movie, the New York Times was publishing the following story about Guatemala on it's website:

Guatemala Bleeds in Vise of Gangs and Vengeance
By Ginger Thompson

Nearly a decade after the end of a civil war that left 200,000 people dead or missing in this country of 14 million people, a new wave of violence has hit Guatemala and it looks a lot like the old one - some say worse. Guatemalan authorities said an estimated 4,325 people were killed in the first 10 months of 2005. That is one of the highest per capita murder rates in Latin America, and far more than the average annual killings in the last decade of this country's armed conflict.

Even in peace, governments across Central America have said violence remains the principal threat to stability. Here, as in neighboring Honduras and El Salvador, the violence comes with many of the trademarks of the cold war: rape, torture and extrajudicial kidnappings and killings. And now, as they did then, human rights investigators have raised concerns about a clandestine "social cleansing campaign," led by rogue police officers and vigilante mobs.

This latest cycle of violence began five years ago, when street gangs with roots in Los Angeles - especially the Mara 18 and the Mara Salvatruchas, known as MS-13 - began to spread across Central America and southern Mexico...

Read the entire article

Each January I burn a bunch of brain cells compiling a list of resolutions to help guide my life and work in the new year. I haven't had time to work on this year's list yet (resolution #1: make time to make resolutions) but after watching "City of God" and reading the above article, one thing is clear: the challenges confronting those of us who struggle for peace and justice in the world are enormous.

Are you ready to resist in 2006?

Tags: Guatemala, City of God, New York, Gangs, Justice