In these Delegation-Seminars, Rights Action takes a comprehensive historical and global approach to understanding the endemic poverty-exploitation, enviro-destruction, repression / foreign interventions, and racism of a place like Guatemala.

FOR WHOM: Concerned citizens and activists, donors, professors and educators, law students and teachers, who are concerned about exploitation-poverty-“development” / foreign interventions and repression / enviro-destruction / and about community-based resistance and work for equality, justice and enviro-well being.

STUDY PLAN: Through a series of city-based meetings with development, enviro- and HR activists and travel to rural areas (including mining company-affected regions) to meet with and learn from community organizations where the negative impacts of the exploitation, racism and repression have been most felt, the Delegation-Seminar will focus on:

• HISTORY: In readings sent to delegates before the trip, and discussions on the first day, this Seminar-Delegation will provide an understanding of 500 years of Guatemalan history – including the past and on-going negative role played by the powerful, wealthy countries of the global north, a perspective necessary to understanding Guatemala’s endemic poverty, racism, repression, impunity and lack of democracy today

* PARTICULAR ISSUES: Indigenous and popular resistance to the harms and violations associated by the global mining industry, including the Glamis Gold open pit mining company; efforts to seek justice and reparations for the U.S.- and western-backed genocide of the 1980s; efforts to seek justice and reparations for forced evictions and massacres related to the World Bank, Inter-american Development Bank funded “Chixoy Hydro-electric Dam project”;

• RESISTANCE & GRASSROOTS MOVEMENTS: Despite the on-going repression – on top of exploitation and widespread enviro-destruction -, there are courageous and vibrant grassroots organizations organizing and fighting for a just development model, for democracy and the rule of law, for the environment and women’s rights.

This Delegation-Seminar - led by Grahame Russell of Rights Action, in conjunction with key partner groups that Rights Action supports and works with in Guatemala - will enable participants to learn first-hand about community development, enviro- and HR struggles and organizing, and about how to be involved, in North America, with political, legal and quasi-legal activism and organizing in support of Guatemalan community-controlled development, enviro- and HR work.

RISKS: Rights Action will have an open discussion with participants about potential risks: on-going political issues; crime; health; etc. Participants will sign a waiver, accepting responsibility for what might happen during the Seminar.

COSTS: US$900. This includes 3 meals a day for 7 days; board for 8 nights/in-country transportation/translation/guiding/honorariums for local community-based groups that participants visit with. Participants are responsible for arranging and paying for their travel to and from Guatemala.

More information

For more information (including costs in UK£), contact Jane Pelly de Jocolt in the UK rightsactionuk [at] yahoo.co.uk