Public Statement

Violence in Guatemala

Guatemalans and friends of Guatemala in Canada are concerned about the prevailing conditions of violence and lack of security in Guatemala. We join our voices to the widespread protests in Guatemala, where the people are saying no to genocide and no to impunity.

We strongly oppose the candidacy of Efraín Ríos Montt, as the FRG's candidate for President in the upcoming November elections. General Ríos Montt has a history of genocide and is using illegal, antidemocratic means to circumvent Guatemala's constitution, which bars his candidacy.

We remember the hundreds of thousands of innocent victims of Guatemala's cruel past with sadness and dismay. Massacres, rape, extrajudicial executions, persecution, torture, unmarked graves, military control over the aboriginal population and genocide were all part of the Ríos Montt dictatorship's terror tactics and scorched earth policy.

This beautiful multilingual and multicultural land does not deserve to be returned to the clutches of military rule. It is time Guatemala knew peace and justice.

We call upon the Constitutional Court, national and international public opinion, human rights organizations, the democratic governments of the world and the Government of Canada in particular to take a stand against Rios Montt's candidacy, and we call for the creation of an international criminal commission to bring this perpetrator of genocide to justice, for the Guatemalan courts do not enjoy the independence to do so.

Committee Against Impunity
Montreal, August 2003

Context

The Years of Violence Under Ríos Montt

General Efraín Ríos Montt took power in Guatemala in a 1982 coup, with the support of US President Ronald Reagan.

He proceeded to conduct a blood-drenched military campaign spearheaded by the "civil self-defence patrols" (PACs), which carried out pacification operations in the villages and massacred thousands of people. His scorched earth tactics resulted in over 15,000 deaths in the space of 17 months and caused 70,000 people to flee the country as refugees.

According to the Historical Clarification Commission (Truth Commission), which is investigating the acts of violence committed during the conflict, 81% of the human rights violations occurred in 1982 and 1983. The army, acting on the orders of the government, was responsible for 85% of the violations.

The blood-letting therefore reached its peak during the period when Ríos Montt was in power. The methods used to control and terrorize the population included threats, torture, disappearances, extrajudicial executions, sexual assault and massacres. All these practices reached unprecedented heights under the Ríos Montt dictatorship.

Ríos Montt has been accused of genocide by numerous organizations but this has not prevented him from attempting to engineer a return to power. He tried to run as a candidate in 1995 and again in 1999 but was barred from running on both occasions. Nevertheless, he occupies an important position of power as President of the Congress of the Republic and wields considerable influence within the governing party, the Guatemalan Republican Front (FRG).

Since the FRG came to power in 2000, the human rights situation in Guatemala has deteriorated steadily. Human rights advocates are being threatened and intimidated. In 2002, over 100 judges and prosecutors were threatened. The Mutual Support Group (GAM) recorded 1,946 human rights violations in 2000, 2,127 in 2001 and 5,326 in 2003. The violations include kidnappings, torture, extrajudicial executions and killings. Nothing is being done to stem the violence and to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Ríos Montt's presence in the government is undermining the rule of law and democracy in Guatemala.

The next presidential election will be held on November 9, 2003 and Ríos Montt is making another bid to run as the FRG candidate, raising a storm of controversy.

Other Releases

In Guatemala, those responsible for genocide are still in power. They must be brought to justice!
Public release following the launch of Mary Ellen Davis documentary, Haunted Land.   Read the release >>

Open letter to the Canadian public
Massacrer's survivor, Mateo Pablo open letter to the Canadian Public. Thankful about public support, Mateo Pablo details the next steps of our campain against impunity in Guatemala.   Read the letter >>