/* Written 11:07 PM Mar 23, 1992 by cerisea in igc:reg.guatemala */ /* ---------- "Cerigua Weekly Briefs" ---------- */ WEEKLY BRIEFS, MARCH 15 - 21, 1992 Priest's Death Suspicious Congressman Diego Velasco has asked the government to investigate the death of Catholic priest Ventura Lux, who allegedly died in a traffic accident on March 14, together with Mayan priest Manuel Gonzalez. Velasco says Lux had received death threats from the army-controlled civil defense patrols. The death threats began when Lux held mass for 29 persons murdered in 1982, and whose remains were exhumed in 1991. The deaths occurred in Chijtinihit, Chichicastenango. Lux was transferred from Chichicastenango to San Andres Sajcabaja, also in Quiche province, but the threats continued. Grassroots groups, organized as "those affected by repression and impunity," say they doubt his death was an accident. They say the road where he died was not his usual route to his parish. Because he identified with the poor and needy, the groups say, he won the hatred of those responsible for oppression in Guatemala. The umbrella organization also demanded an investigation to determine the true cause of his death. Police Evict Homeless in Villalobos National Police forcibly evicted 4,000 homeless families outside Guatemala City from an area known as Villalobos where they had recently tried to settle. According to news reports, the villagers pelted police with rocks and insults, and so provoked a brutal response. Police said the eviction was conducted calmly and within the law with observers present from the offices of the Human Rights Ombudsman and the Attorney General. Members of the fire department, however, said several persons were injured and others, including two teenagers, were taken to the hospital for treatment. Last week up to 50,000 homeless persons moved on to lands around Guatemala City. Reports Conflict in Murder of Mexican Journalist Last week an autopsy confirmed reports that a Mexican journalist killed recently in Guatemala was tortured. The victim's widow maintained that her husband had been tortured after identifying his body. She denied there were indications he had been shot, countering the army's statement that he was shot in combat as a mercenary guerrilla. This week, however, the Mexican press reported statements by the Mexican Attorney General that there were no signs of torture and that Ramon de la Mora's had been shot in the head and back. Following an earlier announcement by the Guatemalan Defense Ministry that the case was closed, acommission of Guatemalan military officials met with Mexican legal authorities and diplomats to discuss the case. A spokesperson for the Human Rights Commission in the Mexican state of Tabasco (CODEHUTAB) said Mora was shot in the head at close range and had no other bullet wounds on his body. The victim's family suspects that because of his physical frailty, Mora died while being tortured by the Guatemalan army. CODEHUTAB says Amnesty International will investigate the case. A municipal official in Cacahotan, Chiapas told the Mexican Attorney General that he received a call from De la Mora on February 25. De la Mora told official Ruben Perez that he had been detained because of immigration problems. He had apparently bribed one of his captors in order to make the phone call which he described as "the most expensive of my life." The Guatemalan army says De la Mora died in combat four days later on February 29. Cristiani Accuses FMLN of Selling Arms to URNG During a visit to Guatemala, Salvadoran President Alfredo Cristiani accused the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) of violating the Salvadoran peace accord. Cristiani said there is evidence that the FMLN is selling arms to guerrilla forces and criminals in Guatemala. Cristiani and Serrano agreed to implement joint measures to minimize a Salvadoran transfer of arms to Guatemalan rebel forces. Serrano said he is sure arms have already been transferred. During his two-day visit to Guatemala on March 16-17, Cristiani reached a number of other agreements with Serrano. The two Central American presidents say they will step up efforts to combat drug traffic and will establish a free trade zone. Serrano said he expects Honduras will soon join the two countries in the free trade agreement. Salvadoran Defense Minister Emilio Ponce accompanied Cristiani and met with his Guatemalan counterpart. After their meeting, Guatemalan Defense Minister Jose Garcia Samayoa, who presides over the Central American Defense Council (CONDECA), said strict measures will be implemented to stop arms traffic in the region. Garcia said the two will work to "reactivate the spirit" of CONDECA, which he says was created to prevent the introduction of communism and intervention by foreign forces in the region. Homeless Teen Girls in Guatemala City The 2,000 homeless girls living in the streets of the capital are for the most part teenagers whose daily survival forces them into premature adulthood. As a female, the soleemployment option after theft or begging is prostitution which carries with it the daily dangers of abuse, AIDS, unwanted pregnancy, illegal abortions and adolescent motherhood. Where do these homeless kids come from? Casa Alianza says political and socio-economic conditions in the Guatemalan family have led to an increase in child abandonment, exploitation and mistreatment. The agents are the children's own families, communities and government. Girls leave home because of the extreme poverty that affects 87.2% of the country's population, or because they are victims of physical and psychological abuse or incest by fathers or other family members. The poverty suffered by a homeless girl both marginalizes her and denies her her rights, leaving her at the mercy of the streets where violence and abuse are the norm. One social worker says there are very few persons, institutions or programs that will open doors to homeless girls because no one perceives them as having a problem. Labor Federations Make Proposal for Peace and Democracy The Guatemalan Labor Confederation (CUSG) is proposing a national dialogue parallel to government-URNG peace negotiations. The twelve labor federations in CUSG are calling on the government, peace conciliator Bishop Rodolfo Quezada, the press, labor and grassroots groups, human rights and religious organizations, the business sector and political parties to work toward this. CUSG says for there to be social justice and respect for human rights, people must move forward toward building peace, liberty and democracy with enough food for all. Changes in the social, economic and political structure cannot wait any longer; a national conference must be organized now. Proposed agenda items include labor, land use, forced military recruitment and the civil patrols (PAC). Bishop Quezada: Peace Talks are Foundation for Democracy Peace negotiations should be considered a way of laying the foundation for democracy, peace conciliator Bishop Rodolfo Quezada says. He said the discussion on human rights remains a touchy issue but noted that agreements have been reached on international monitoring and the role of government bodies. The accords would be useless, he said, without international verification. The aim of the talks is not just to end the war but to lay the foundation for a functional and participatory democracy and firm and lasting peace, he added. "The insurgency has said that, before it demobilizes, substantive issues must be addressed with seriousness and depth." Bishop Quezada arrived in Mexico on March 17 to discuss a revised proposal on human rights with the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity (URNG). Quezada said he maintains hope that differences over human rights will be resolved as soon as possible, but does not wish to create false hopes among in Guatemala. URNG Rep: Three Points Hold Up Agreement Political-diplomatic representative Miguel Angel Sandoval says progress on the talks is hindered by the government's refusal to discuss three key points on human rights. Sandoval says the government refuses to adequately address the abolition of the civil defense patrols (PAC). Dissolving the PAC is a national demand, says Sandoval, and was recently recommended by the United Nations. Sandoval says the government has likewise refused to sign an agreement on international humanitarian law which protects the lives of non-combatant populations, prisoners of war and those wounded in combat. The government has also rejected the Truth and Justice Commission proposed by the URNG to investigate past human rights violations, adds Sandoval, and has not proposed a concrete alternative. Finally, Sandoval repeats the URNG's statement that the human rights agreement must go into effect immediately, and cannot wait until a final peace accord is reached. Frank LaRue on Cheney's Visit to Guatemala Following US Defense Secretary Cheney's February visit to Guatemala, the Serrano government announced that new relations were opening up between the two countries. CERIGUA interviewed Frank LaRue of the United Representation of the Guatemalan Opposition (RUOG) to get his perspective on the current state of US-Guatemala sentiment. The most surprising news during Cheney's visit was his remark that a renewal of US military aid to Guatemala was indeed possible. LaRue told CERIGUA "the Pentagon says in Washington that it was a misquote from an AP wire." According to LaRue, the Pentagon's position is that the US is concerned about the human rights situation and that if it is renewed, it is not going to be soon. He also pointed out that since this message comes from the Defense Department, it is probably quite a surprise for the Guatemalan army as well, because it's not the usual message from the Pentagon. LaRue says Cheney sought to befriend the new army high command installed in December or to identify military factions that the US can relate to. Despite the army's independence and nationalism, LaRue says the US can try to convince the army that in order for Guatemala to survive inthe new world economic order, there must be demilitarization along with national and regional market development or Guatemala will face collapse. Government Denies Part in Drug Trafficking The Guatemalan government denied this week that officials are involved in the drug trade. It also rejected claims that the national banking system provides a cover for laundering drug money. The government did admit, however, that clandestine drug trade has increased in Guatemala because of its limited ability to control it. In coordination with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) the government confiscated 15 metric tons of cocaine during 1991. However, drug planes can freely land on hundreds of clandestine airstrips in Guatemala because the country has no radar system. US Ambassador Thomas Stroock warned that international drug traffickers are trying to "buy" Central American governments and build a new center for operations in the region. He said the illegal trade has shifted to Central America because of successful efforts by the Mexican government to curtail activity in its territory. Giant Sculpture Discovered Archaeologists from Salt Lake City have discovered in Guatemala the largest Mayan sculpture ever found, according to the daily Prensa Libre. The giant mask-like piece was found at Nakbe, about ten miles south of El Mirador in the Peten. Airplane pilots first discovered the Nakbe site in 1930. The site was later explored by Harvard archaeologist Ian Graham in 1962. The recently-discovered sculpture, measuring over thirty feet wide and twelve feet high, was fashioned around 300 BC. Its sophisticated architectural features have excited the scientific community, according to archaeologist Richard Hansen of the University of California. Excavation of the site began in 1980 when excavators found a dinosaur skeleton but reburied the bones to protect them from deterioration upon contact with the environment. ***************** 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: $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.