/* Written 10:13 PM Mar 5, 1991 by cerisea in igc:reg.guatemala */ /* ---------- "Cerigua Briefs Feb 24 - Mar 2" ---------- */ CERIGUA WEEKLY BRIEFS, February 24 - March 2, 1991 Response to Decision by UN Human Rights Commission Despite compelling testimony given in Geneva by Guatemalan and international organizations on the subject of human rights violations in Guatemala, twenty-one governments voted for the UN's role to be merely that of consultant to the Guatemalan government on the matter. In a close vote on Monday among members of the UN Commission on Human Rights, a slight majority, which included mostly Latin American and African governments, voted to give President Serrano's new government the benefit of the doubt. Among these were Peru, Columbia, Mauritania and the Philippines which, together with Guatemala, are all among the six countries Amnesty International names as having the worst record on political disappearances. Australia, Canada, Japan, Panama, the United States, Zambia and several European countries favored the appointment of a special rapporteur to investigate and monitor human rights violations in Guatemala. The final count: 21 to provide consultation only, 16 to name a special rapporteur and 5 abstentions. The exiled United Representation of the Guatemalan Opposition (RUOG) called Monday's vote damaging to the human rights commission's credibility. The group believes the UN decision gives the Guatemalan army a blank check to continue its repressive policies and that political factors influenced the vote. Traditionally, governments of a given region vote as a bloc, often in order to avoid having the issue of human rights in their own countries investigated. The World University Service, present at the commission's proceedings, expressed surprise that a report by UN expert Christian Tomuschat, who spent time in Guatemala, did not include human rights violations committed under the new government. In the first six weeks of Serrano's administration, reports of more than 120 murders with characteristics of political violence appeared in the Guatemalan press. The Guatemalan Association of University Students (AEU) expressed disbelief that the government delegation in Geneva would not guarantee the safety of the Guatemalans testifying before the United Nations. International organizations had requested protection for members of the Mutual Support Group for Relatives of the Disappeared (GAM), the Center for the Investigation, Study and Promotion of Human Rights (CIEPRODH), the Runujel Junam Council of Ethnic Communities (CERJ) and the AEU. Guatemala Vice Foreign Minister Haroldo Rodas said this week that denouncements of human rights violations jeopardize the nation's democratic process. On a broadcast Wednesday over Patrullaje Informativo, government human rights ombudsman Ramiro de Leon expressed satisfaction with the UN decision. He went as far as to say that if the vote had gone the other way, many countries would not wish to engage in trade with Guatemala, adversely affecting loans and economic aid. Delegation Visits Communities in Resistance In a statement circulated on Saturday, the Communities of Population in Resistance (CPR) demand the immediate removal of six military installations in the area known as the Ixil Triangle in the Quiche province. The Communities are also demanding President Serrano make known where 8,000 (eight thousand) members of the CPRs who were captured by the army are being held. Residents of the Communities live in the mountains of the Quiche province outside the bounds of the numerous military resettlement camps there. They expressed appreciation to a delegation of Guatemalans and foreigners that visited the communities this week. The visit was organized at the CPRs' request in order to document the existence of the communities themselves and the conditions that exist in them. Since fleeing army operations in the early 1980s, thousands of Guatemalans have lived in these settlements, with inadequate food and lack of medical care and formal education. The CPRs report that the army continues to bomb their communities, burn their homes and crops, and kidnap residents. According to Wednesday's Guatemala Flash broadcast, the delegation included representatives of the human rights ombudsman's office, the National Reconcilation Commission, the Catholic Bishops Conference, Guatemalan Religious Conference (CONFREGUA), Protestant Church Conference (CIEDEG), Permanent Assembly of Christian Groups (APGC), Special Commission to Aid Repatriates (CEAR), United Labor and Popular Action (UASP), Council of Development Institutions (COINDE), International Peace Brigades, Witness for Peace, groups from Canada and Sweden, and journalists. Both the insurgency and the army offered the delegation guarantees of safety during their trip through the zone of frequent combat in Quiche. U.S. Religious Leaders Express Concern for Communities A group of United States bishops and other religious leaders have issued a letter "of faith and solidarity" published in the Tuesday edition of Prensa Libre. The leaders expressed concern for the welfare of persons living in the Communities of Population in Resistance. They supported a call from several Guatemalan groups to recognize the communities as a non-combatant population that falls under the protection of the Geneva guidelines for treatment of civilians in times of war. The religious supported this week's visit to the communities by a delegation of human rights and religious personnel. The letter was signed by seven bishops and religious officials from United Church Women, the National Church Council, the American Friends Service Committee, Witness for Peace, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers and Sojourners. Homeless Evicted from Shantytown More than 1,100 families were forced to evacuate their makeshift homes in an area of steep ravines in northern Guatemala City. The property is owned by the National Bank of Housing (BANVI) and is located in zone 18 of the capital. All but 150 of the families had been living there for the past three years. On Sunday anti-riot police destroyed the families' homes made of cardboard, plastic, and pieces of wood or tin. Manuel Vicente Lopez, president of the committee representing residents, protested the eviction, saying that BANVI had given the families permission to live there. Wednesday's Prensa Libre reported that the personal belongings of hundreds of those evicted on Sunday were now alongside the highway in zone 18. The workers union at BANVI reported on February 14 that land set aside for the homeless had instead been given to several close associates of the bank president for their personal use. Striking Social Security Workers Arrested President Serrano ordered the intervention of national police in the month-old strike by workers at the Guatemalan Social Security Institute (IGSS). Serrano said he would not allow disorder to be caused by a small group of non-conformists. On Tuesday anti-riot squads cleared strikers out of IGSS buildings they were occupying and arrested more than 50 workers. Victor Alvarado of the IGSS workers emergency committee, interviewed later that day said the arrests were illegal. He said also that the striking workers had the backing of the larger organizations in the United Labor and Popular Action (UASP) as well as the Unitary Front of Guatemalan Workers (FUTG). Alvarado, who has personally received death threats since the strike began, reported a string of incidents that have occurred and which have apparently been intended to intimidate the strikers. After negotiations came to halt ended last week without results, President Serrano ordered that IGSS medical services return to normal and strikers occupying IGSS premises be removed. Alvarado has charged that IGSS directors received instructions directly from the president's office to ignore strikers' petitions. He held the President responsible for the current situation. UASP: Social Pact is Straitjacket The social pact pushed by President Serrano officially convened on Friday evening, March 1. Those invited reportedly included CACIF (Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commerical, Industrial and Financial Associations), five union organizations and representatives of cooperatives. Earlier in the week the United Labor and Popular Action (UASP) accused the government and CACIF of trying to straitjacket Guatemala's working poor. For the majority they say, the social pact means resignation in the face of continued poverty. The largest coalition of labor and grassroots organizations charged that President Serrano and the nation's elite have not shown any willingness to set ambition aside and work to end the population's suffering. UASP refused last week to be a participant in the social pact. The labor federation CUSG said Tuesday that it will partipate in the social pact , although with reservations, and will withdraw if it believes workers will not benefit from it. The federation said it will demand measures to increase jobs, recuperate buying power lost as the nation's currency has weakened, and improve salaries. Minister of Labor Mario Solorzano on Thursday invited all those interested in the well-being of the country to join the social pact and said those who do not will have no cause to complain later. Commission Formed to Mediate Refugee Situation A commission was named on Friday to act as intermediary between the Guatemalan government and Guatemalan refugees living in Mexico, according to the commissions representing the refugees. The refugee representatives were in Guatemala City this week to hold meetings with different groups. The mediating commission will be headed by Monsignor Rodolfo Quezada, president of the National Reconciliation Commission and theCatholic Bishops Conference. Members of the human rights ombudsman's office, the United Nations High Commission on Refugees and the Guatemalan Human Rights Commission will also be on the commission. URNG Leader Responds to Statement by Serrano In an interview on Saturday, February 23, Commander Pablo Monsanto of the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity (URNG) said the insurgency is willing to meet with the government and army as stipulated in agreements signed last year in Oslo. Monsanto said that recent contradictions in government statements regarding conditions for the talks suggest a harder line is being taken by top military officials. President Serrano said last week insurgents must lay down their arms before talks can begin. This contrasts with the position he maintained through the election period and his first month in office. Monsanto believes efforts may be underway to find a pretext to call off the talks. He said Serrano's change in position, placing conditions on talks with the armed opposition, represents a step backward after advances made last year. The Oslo Accords, signed in March 1990, began a dialogue aimed at direct talks between the government, army and URNG. These accords do not mention disarming as a prerequisite to the talks. Cholera Crisis Feared in Guatemala More than a million people living in the poor districts surrounding Guatemala City drink water that is highly contaminated with human feces, according to a government official. Coronel Francisco Gordillo, governor of the capital province, said the affected areas include Mixco, Chuarrancho, Amatitlan, Villa Nueva, Villa Canales, San Pedro Ayampuc and San Miguel Petapa. Cholera is most often transmitted through contaminated water. An epidemic of cholera was recently reported in Peru by the Panamerican Health Organization. ***************** In the U.S. and Canada subscribe to Weekly Briefs by sending check or money order to: ANI PO Box 28481 Seattle, WA 98118 Subscription fees in the U.S. and Canada: $9 for 3 months, $18 for 6 months, $36 for one year. Elsewhere, contact: CERIGUA Apartado Postal 74206 CP 09080 Delegacion Itzapalapa Mexico, D.F. Telephone: 5102320 - FAX 5109061 - Telex (17) 64525 Also please send us your comments and suggestions to the Seattle address or by email to cerisea on PeaceNet.