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When the Mountains Tremble (clip)

War on Democracy - Guate cut

Bilingual education in Guatemala

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View Article  Guatemala Human Rights Commission: Report 21 - 27 September
This excellent weekly report can't be found on the web- we publish it here with kind permission from CDHG on this blog.


INFORME SEMANAL SOBRE DERECHOS HUMANOS
Comision de Derechos Humanos de Guatemala
No. 34/07

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Fuentes directas CDHG, Prensa Libre, Siglo Veintiuno, El Periódico, Guatemala Hoy
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CDHG
2 Av. 4-66, apto. C-4, zona 1.
Tel/Fax: (502) 22203576 /22534285
E-mail: cdhg@intelnett.com
=======================================

These are the headlines- for the full report click on 'more':

- Fue asesinado dirigente de Sindicato de Trabajadores de Izabal
- CODECA denuncia atentado contra presidente de su junta directiva
- Dos policías fueron detenidos por la ejecución extrajudicial de cinco jóvenes
- Trabajadores denuncian violaciones a sus derechos laborales en el archivo de la PN
- Setecientos tres candidatos electos no presentaron constancia de la CGCN
   more »
View Article  Film: Mayan Territory

Just had this email through from Victoria Tai about her great film documenting work going on in Guatemala and around to employ technology in ingenius ways:

This is the moment I've been anticipating for a long, long time...because for three years I've shared my faraway journeys in writing/photographs--from Africa, Asia, and Latin America---but now I can really invite you into the heart of the experience.

My first documentary filmed in Central America explores the innovative technologies, peasant livelihoods and personal stories we've encountered. So, as I now send this off to North American television stations, and prepare for my first trip to Bolivia and Peru, I am proud to show you {Develop}'s first 25-minute film " Mayan Territory" which is available online at http://develop.blip.tv  but f or the best viewing results, download the file onto your desktop. 

We've tried with so many platforms and with different sizes to best share it with everyone, so I hope it works!



Low-Resolution 50MB version:
http://develop.blip.tv

High-Resolution 280MB version | Right-click and "save-link-as":
[English:]  http://www.squarefree.com/mirrors/MayanTerritory.avi
[Spanish:]  http://www.jeziorek.com/MayanTerritory-sp.avi
View Article  Guatemala Human Rights Commission: Report 14-20 September
This excellent weekly report can't be found on the web- we publish it here with kind permission from CDHG on this blog.


INFORME SEMANAL SOBRE DERECHOS HUMANOS
Comision de Derechos Humanos de Guatemala
No. 36/07 Del 14 al 20 de septiembre de 2007

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Fuentes directas CDHG, Prensa Libre, Siglo Veintiuno, El Periódico, Guatemala Hoy
=======================================
CDHG
2 Av. 4-66, apto. C-4, zona 1.
Tel/Fax: (502) 22203576 /22534285
E-mail: cdhg@intelnett.com
=======================================

These are the headlines- for the full report click on 'more':

- Carlos Castresana fue nombrado por Naciones Unidas para dirigir CICIG
- Tres trabajadoras despedidas expondrán su caso a la CIDH
- Plataforma Agraria: existe indiferencia ante problemas en el campo
- San Marcos: iglesia católica teme contaminación de ríos en Sipacapa
- Observatorio Electoral recibió 286 denuncias luego de comicios 2007
   more »
View Article  Guatemala Human Rights Commission: Report 8-13 September
This excellent weekly report can't be found on the web- we publish it here with kind permission from CDHG on this blog.


INFORME SEMANAL SOBRE DERECHOS HUMANOS
Comision de Derechos Humanos de Guatemala
No. 35/07 Del 8 al 13 de septiembre de 2007

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Fuentes directas CDHG, Prensa Libre, Siglo Veintiuno, El Periódico, Guatemala Hoy
=======================================
CDHG
2 Av. 4-66, apto. C-4, zona 1.
Tel/Fax: (502) 22203576 /22534285
E-mail: cdhg@intelnett.com
=======================================

These are the headlines- for the full report click on 'more':

- ONU aprobó Declaración de los Pueblos Indígenas
- Amenazan a políticos y periodistas en Escuintla y Retalhuleu
- Testigo del incendio de la embajada de España presentó declaración
- CUC denuncia desalojo de diez mil familias durante el actual gobierno
- Candidatos que obtuvieron más votos analizan alianzas
   more »
View Article  Early Indications Point To Second Round
Current results in at the TSE confirm a second round now with Colom leading Perez Molina [Resultados preliminares a las 04:36:00 (-6GMT) 2007-09-10]:



At 6pm in Guatemala

The first results of exit polls seem to confirm that there will be a second round of voting between presidential candidates Otto Perez Molina and Alvaro Colom on 4th November. As this screen grab from El Periodico taken at 6pm local time shows:




View Article  Confronting Femicide in Guatemala
Kathleen Melville writes in Upside Down World, 'not only was Guatemala’s civil war one of the longest and bloodiest in Latin America, but it was also a particularly ruthless war for unarmed female civilians. Although women made up only a very small part of armed forces on either the government or the guerilla’s side, an estimated 25 percent of the deaths were women. Many of these killings took place when entire communities were systematically massacred in a state-sanctioned campaign aimed at undermining the rural base of guerilla forces. During these attacks, the rape and torture of unarmed women by the military was not uncommon'.   more »
View Article  Guatemala Human Rights Commission: Report 31 August- 6 September
This excellent weekly report can't be found on the web- we publish it here with kind permission from CDHG on this blog.


INFORME SEMANAL SOBRE DERECHOS HUMANOS
Comision de Derechos Humanos de Guatemala
No. 34/07 Del 31 de agosto al 7 de septiembre de 2007

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Fuentes directas CDHG, Prensa Libre, Siglo Veintiuno, El Periódico, Guatemala Hoy
=======================================
CDHG
2 Av. 4-66, apto. C-4, zona 1.
Tel/Fax: (502) 22203576 /22534285
E-mail: cdhg@intelnett.com
=======================================

These are the headlines- for the full report click on 'more':

- JED suspende actividad política en Tamahú y busca apoyo militar debido a conflictos y amenazas
- Fueron asesinados candidatos a concejal y síndico, de Encuentro por Guatemala
- Ríos Montt solicita ante CC que archivos militares sean secreto
- Río Motagua se desborda y afecta poblaciones de Izabal
- Magistrados de la CC: consultas populares realizadas en Zacapa y San Marcos no son vinculantes
- Foro Guatemala llama a población a no votar por delincuentes y a los partidos insta a respetar resultados
   more »
View Article  Kilometer 207: Along the Side of the Road


Here is a trailer for the documentary, "Kilometer 207: Along the Side of the Road" by Grégory Lassalle (August, 2007) from Collectif Guatemala which tells the story of the Finca Nueva Linda. You can get more information about the documentary from collectifguatemala2 [at] riseup.net.

James Rodriguez on his blog MiMundo.org covers the recent series of events to demand justice for the forced disappearance of Hector Reyes and the massacre of August 31, 2004. He tells of how the documentary by Gregory Lassalle was shown. He explains:

Bety Reyes Toledo, daughter of the disappeared Hector Reyes, declares in the documentary: "If a rich person would have been kidnapped, a poor person would already be in jail. But, since it was a rich person who kidnapped my father, nothing has been clarified. Three years have passed in our struggle for justice, and nothing is clear. That is why we want justice to be applied equally... It is as if justice does not apply to us poor."

Despite having suffered a number of harassments and even been shot upon with gunfire, family members of Hector Reyes and the formidable group of peasants who accompany their struggle continue their peaceful resistance in search for justice. A community member reaffirms: "We have received threats, persecutions and intimidations by the private security. But we do not care. We will not take one step backwards until justice is made."

Background: Amnesty International Report 'Guatemala: Land of injustice?'

"In September 2003, Héctor Reyes, a union leader and administrator on the Nueva Linda farm, went missing in mysterious circumstances near the port of Champerico, Retalhuleu, South West Guatemala. The farm owner and the head of the farm's security were subsequently identified by the police as the main suspects. The following month some 200 campesinos from the Nueva Linda farm and the surrounding area occupied the farm to protest against the lack of investigations into the suspected abduction. Eight months later, on 31 August 2004, they were forcibly evicted. A number of police and campesinos were killed, including three minors. Thirty months after the abduction of Héctor Reyes, his fate and the circumstances in which he went missing are still unknown."

"The first line of police was unarmed. As they advanced, three policemen were shot and killed in disputed circumstances; another policeman later died of his wounds. Eight campesinos, including three minors, were also killed. Campesinos as well as journalists covering the event were beaten and threatened by police agents. Several journalists also had their video cameras seized after allegedly filming extrajudicial executions and beatings by police. All the homes, including contents, were burned by the police."

More information: Amnesty International Report
View Article  Perez Molina Edging Out In Front


This is the front page news on Prensa Libre today with Otto Perez Molina (Partido Patriota) taking the lead over Alvaro Colom (Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza), front runner since the start of the campaign. What's also in the article is that Rigoberta Menchu (Encuentro por Guatemala has slipped to sixth with both Eduardo Suger (Centro de Acción Social) and Luis Rabbe (Frente Republicano Guatemalteco) over taking her.

There's a really interesting discussion from a Guatemalan perspective about Menchu's candidacy (in Spanish) on Rudy Giron's blog Crónicas efímeras.
View Article  Otra Guatemala es posible desde abajo y a la izquierda

'A las puertas de un nuevo evento electoral el Colectivo de Organizaciones Sociales
(COS) desea compartir con usted, ciudadano, sus puntos de vista y razonar sobre las opciones que se le ofrecen al momento de depositar su voto.'

So begins the attached report, recently published, by Colectivo de Organizaciones Sociales (COS) entitled, 'Otra Guatemala es posible desde abajo y a la izquierda'.

1 Attachments
View Article  Letter from Guatemala
The left, right, military, narco – nothing is what it seems. What is real is the lack of engagement by the population at large. In addition, an analysis by Pastor Valle-Garay, found in Incidencia Democrática, dares to compare the national elections with community consultas. The relevant populations feel they have a stake in something that concerns them and are casting their vote in large numbers. This, naturally, turns on its head the perceived lack of democratic engagement in Guatemala. The people are engaged if they are asked the right question. Both the letter and the article are in Spanish.   more »
View Article  Hurricane Felix Strikes Central America
The BBC is reporting the following:

Felix weakened as it travelled west later on Tuesday.

However the storm is expected to bring heavy rains to southern Honduras and Guatemala, where hillside villages are vulnerable to mudslides.

Hurricane Felix comes only two weeks after the region was hit by Hurricane Dean.

It is the first time on record that two Atlantic hurricanes made landfall as category-five storms in a single season.

But although the two hurricanes killed more than 20 people and destroyed thousands of homes, their impact has been far less devastating than that of Hurricane Mitch in 1998.



More updated info in Wikipedia.

Here's a video of the flooding caused in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala after the passing of Hurricane Felix.


View Article  Guatemala Human Rights Commission: Report 24-30 August
This excellent weekly report can't be found on the web- we publish it here with kind permission from CDHG on this blog.


INFORME SEMANAL SOBRE DERECHOS HUMANOS
Comision de Derechos Humanos de Guatemala
No. 33/07 Del 24 al 30 de agosto de 2007

=======================================
Fuentes directas CDHG, Prensa Libre, Siglo Veintiuno, El Periódico, Guatemala Hoy
=======================================
CDHG
2 Av. 4-66, apto. C-4, zona 1.
Tel/Fax: (502) 22203576 /22534285
E-mail: cdhg@intelnett.com
=======================================

These are the headlines- for the full report click on 'more':

- Habitantes de Zacapa sufren hambruna
- Dirigente campesino sufrió atentado, en Chiquimula
- CSJ declara sin lugar un antejuicio contra diputados
- Baja Verapaz: pobladores y fuerzas de seguridad se enfrentan por alcalde en Cubulco
- Guatemala se está quedando sin recursos hídricos
- El país: la violencia del crimen organizado marca la campaña electoral en Guatemala
   more »
View Article  Confessions Of The US Empire


When John Perkins wrote 'Confessions of an Economic Hitman' he got his fair share of criticism. Sebastian Mallaby of the Washington Post was keen to point out the facts as he saw them. But it's hard to find anything particularly controversial in the broad thrust of what Perkins lets us in on namely:  the US has primarily used economic muscle to build the biggest empire in the world today, and corporate power is far reaching in US society today.

Following on from posts of this blog about John Pilger's (journalist) and Niall Ferguson's (academic) take of US power in Latin America, it interesting to read Perkin's account as someone who was involved directly in the development of the modern day empire.

In his book, Perkins uses the example of General Omar Torrijos in Panama:

"In 1972 Perkins went to see the then dictator of Panama, General Omar Torrijos. Torrijos was a nationalist who was eager to wrest control of the Panama Canal from the US. Perkins went in to read him the riot act and came out with what sounded like an agreement. Some years later, Torrijos started talking to the Japanese about building a larger, sea-level canal for Panama that would have undermined American influence and corporate interests in the area.

One night in 1981 Torrijos died when his Twin Otter aircraft crashed under mysterious circumstances. Perkins is convinced he was killed by US interests who placed a bomb on the plane. Had he lived, Perkins writes in his book, Confessions Of An Economic Hit Man, "He would have served as a role model for a generation of leaders in the Americas, Africa and Asia - something the CIA, the NSA [National Security Agency] and the EHMs [economic hit men] could not allow."
 

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