Who are we?

The Committee Against Impunity in Guatemala

The Committee Against Impunity in Guatemala was set up in Montreal, Canada, as a result of the release of Haunted Land, a documentary by Mary Ellen Davis that tells the story of Mateo Pablo, survivor of a massacre that happened in his village, Petanac, on July 14th 1982. His story, as told in his own words, is also that of millions of Guatemalans who have gone through decades of war and the terrible repression that was a part of it, from 1954 to 1996. In the course of this conflict, over 200,000 were killed, a great number of them during such massacres.

The situation in Guatemala remains very tense. Basically, survivors of massacres, extrajudiciary executions, torture, rape, can not find a positive reply to their quest for justice. Human rights workers, lawyers and members of the judiciary are under attack, many receiving death threats. Presidential power is in the hands of Alfonso Portillo, head of the party that was founded by one of the most notorious war criminals of Latin America: Rios Montt, himself president of Guatemala's Congress. Obviously, mpunity prevails.

After first organizing a cross-Canada tour for Mateo Pablo (with the precious support of GCSN, Guatemala Canada Solidarity Network,) the Committee's present goal is to oppose impunity in Guatemala in many different ways: awareness campaigns, urgent actions, public announcements, etc. We are presently working on a request that Canadian authorities incriminate those responsible for atrocities committed in Guatemala during the war: not only those physically responsible but also the intellectual authors.