In 1954 a CIA orchestrated coup overthrew the democratically elected government of Jacobo Arbenz in Guatemala and set the stage for nearly four decades of civil conflict in which more than 200,000 people were killed or disappeared. Entire villages were massacred as the government waged a 36-year-long civil war with leftist guerrillas. The height of this violence occurred from 1979 to 1983 under the successive dictatorships of Romeo Lucas García and Efraín Ríos Montt, when 132,000 of the 200,000 fell victim. No distinction was made between men and women, young and old, or between civilians and armed combatants in a scorched-earth campaign that displaced over one million people.

The Challenges to Peace

In 1996 the government and the URNG guerrilla group signed a historic peace agreement, effectively ending the violence. The Peace Accords of 1996 were a blueprint for social, economic and political reforms, meant to generate fundamental social change in Guatemala. They mandated military and intelligence reforms aimed at reducing the influence of the armed forces in government and society, the rigorous pursuit of justice in cases of human rights abuses and the implementation of a reparations program for human rights victims, financial reforms to revive the economy and combat corruption, and rural development programs designed with the full participation of indigenous groups.

The hopes for peace and justice that emerged in Guatemala with the Peace Accords are currently giving way to frustration and distrust. Although the war did end and human rights violations declined dramatically, little progress has been made in implementing deeper reforms, and the last five years have seen some disturbing setbacks. The Guatemalan government has failed to enact the necessary legislation to comply with the mandates of the peace agreement and the current administration has overseen two large increases in the military budget, while social programs are under funded and slow to reach those in need. Many of those responsible for grave human rights violations during the years of conflict continue to hold high-ranking military and political positions. Others are using their political and military influence to carry out illegal activities such as contraband and drug trafficking. The US embassy in Guatemala recently revoked the visa of one such person, former general José Ortega Menaldo, who is thought to have organized crime within the military. There is an increasing atmosphere of intimidation directed at human rights workers, lawyers, witnesses and forensic anthropologists, as well as at labor leaders, journalists and political opponents. Survivors of the atrocities committed during the years of conflict and families of the victims still seek justice for those crimes and the closure it will bring.

In addition, the current administration of President Alfonso Portillo faces serious accusations of corruption. Efraín Ríos Montt, currently the President of Congress, may be next in line for the presidency if it collapses.

Justice for the Offenders, Closure for the Victims

The death toll after nearly four decades of violence in Guatemala is greater than that of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Argentina and Chile combined. While there have been some efforts to try Guatemalan human rights cases in foreign courts, for justice to be meaningful to the victims and to contribute to the strengthening of the justice system it must be achieved and witnessed within Guatemala. The government must recognize that the fair and open trial of human rights violators is a necessary step toward strengthening the rule of law and democratic institutions in Guatemala and towards reaching a lasting reconciliation. The successful execution of cases relating to human rights violations in Guatemala not only sets a precedent that would prevent future violations but also provides a sense of closure for the victims of previous government atrocities.

Two pending cases offer a significant opportunity for the Guatemalan government to acknowledge the atrocities committed in the past and bring those responsible to justice. The Association for Justice and Reconciliation (AJR), an association of survivors and surviving relatives from a group of communities that suffered massacres in 1981 and 1982, with the legal advice of the Center for Human Rights Legal Action (CALDH), is bringing two cases against former dictators Lucas García and Ríos Montt, charging them with genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The UN sponsored Commission for Historical Clarification and Amnesty International have found that the manner in which the military conducted its operations and the nature of the atrocities committed amount to genocide--the systematic, targeted annihilation of a people based on national, ethnic or religious identity. Eighty-three percent of the victims in the Guatemalan conflict were indigenous Mayan Indians.

Forensic evidence has been gathered through on-site investigations and the exhumations of mass graves and more than 100 eyewitnesses have been deposed. Three of the defendants in the Ríos Montt case voluntarily came forward to offer their testimonies. While they deny the charges, their reaction suggests that they recognize the strength of the cases against them. The trials are expected to begin this summer. However, intense pressure from NGOs and the international community will be needed to see the cases reach completion.

Extraordinary efforts by victims' relatives and civil society can force some limited progress even in Guatemala. The remarkable Helen Mack continues to purse the case against the intellectual authors of the murder of her sister, anthropologist Myrna Mack. In June 2001, after a long and problematic trial plagued by threats and prosecutorial errors, Guatemalan courts convicted three military officers and a priest in the case of Bishop Gerardi. Bishop Juan José Gerardi was beaten to death in 1998 two days after he issued a report which placed the blame on the military for the majority of human rights violations in Guatemala during the conflict years. Also in the summer of 2001, the State acknowledged its responsibility for acts of mass violence for the first time when it agreed to compensate the relatives of the more than 200 victims in the Dos Erres Massacre.

The Need for International Pressure

Intense NGO and international pressure is needed to force government institutions to seek justice in the cases of past human rights violations and to curb current human rights abuses. The United States, as one of the largest supporters of the Peace Accords politically and economically, still has some ability to pressure the government of Guatemala to take the necessary steps to fully implement the mandates of the peace agreement, prosecute those responsible for past atrocities and improve state transparency and accountability.

Recommended Action:

It is a critical moment for the US to exert pressure on the government of Guatemala to fully implement the mandates of the Peace Accords and to prosecute those responsible for grave human rights abuses. The current US ambassador to Guatemala, Prudence Bushnell, has tried to use her influence in a positive way to pressure the Portillo Administration on human rights issues. However, her term will soon be over and the new ambassador must also take a forceful position. Now is the time to call or write the Department of State urging Colin Powell to convey a firm position.

Ask Secretary of State Powell to urge the Guatemalan government to:

• comply with the 1996 peace accords, including reforms to bring the military under civilian control and strengthen the justice system
• address the corruption scandal that has enveloped high-ranking cabinet officials and the President himself
• ensure that the trials against Rios Montt and Lucas Garcia proceed effectively with adequate protection for the communities bringing the suit, their lawyers and witnesses.

You may want to urge Secretary of State Powell to ensure that the next ambassador strongly press these issues as did Ambassador Bushnell.

Secretary of State Colin Powell
The State Department
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC

General Assembly

In light of Guatemala's concentrated governmental effort using its repressive forces to eliminate opposition through threats, beatings, kidnappings, killings, and violent suppression of demonstrations, the 1980 PCUS General Assembly urged the U.S. President to suspend, not increase, all assistance to the government of Guatemala… (PCUS Minutes, 1980, p. 59)

The 1983 PC(USA) Assembly called for the reinstatement of "…the 1977 embargo on the shipment of military and support equipment… [and the] use of its [U.S.] influence with the government of Guatemala to bring to an end its confiscation of lands belonging to Indian peasant farmers and the assassination, torture and disappearance of many of those Indians in the process…." The Assembly also called on the U.S. to safeguard the lives of displaced persons and indigenous peoples of the region (PC(USA) Minutes, 1983, p. 763).

The 207th General Assembly (1995) [expressed its concern over the murder of Manuel Saquic Vasquez [a Presbyterian minister] the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) do the following:

• Direct the Stated Clerk to urge and demand, on behalf of the 207th General Assembly, that the government of Guatemala conduct a full investigation of this kidnapping and murder, and that this be communicated to the president of Guatemala, the "Procurador de los Derechos Humanos,"
• Direct the Stated Clerk to request that the United States government urge and demand that the government of Guatemala conduct a full investigation of this kidnapping and murder, and that this be communicated to the president of the United States, the secretary of state, and the ambassador of the United States to Guatemala.
• Direct the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Foundation to establish a permanent fund, the interest of which shall be made available to the Worldwide Ministries Division of the General Assembly Council to be used for aid and sustenance to the families of Presbyterian clergy who lose their lives for their faith. (Minutes, 1995, p. 446)

Guatemalan peace accords were signed on December 29, 1996, after thirty-six years of civil war that caused more than 100,000 people to lose their lives; 40,000 to become "disappeared;" and a million to be driven from their homes or into exile… [T]he tensions related to the war and the great social inequalities are not likely to disappear just with the signing of a piece of paper.

The National Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Guatemala continues to live in fear from the threats that several of its indigenous leaders have experienced, in spite of government protection of Presbyterians in the Chimaltenango area. The Manuel Saquic case has yet to be solved. (Minutes, 1997, pp. 604-605)