Guatemala: ‘For the life of women, no more killings’

Since 2001, thousands of young women and girls have been killed in Guatemala in an epidemic of unsolved murders. The numbers paint a horrific picture – 481 deaths in 2004, 338 in 2005, 471 in 2006 and 431 in 2007, according to Grupo de Apoyo Mútuo (GAM), a well-respected Guatemalan human rights organisation. In the first six months of 2008, the figure stood at 214.

The majority of the victims were young, poor women between the ages of 13 and 30. Many were students, housewives, factory workers, domestic employees or workers in the informal sector; some of the victims were professionals. Faced with this growing wave of brutal killings, the Guatemalan government has failed to bring those responsible to justice. The low priority of the issue is reflected in the scant resources allocated to investigations and the almost complete absence of prosecutions – there have been rulings in only 20 femicide cases since 2000.

On a November speaker tour entitled "Beyond violence - For the life of women, no more killings (Por la vida de las mujeres, ni una muerte más"), which has included events stretching all over the UK from Edinburgh to Totnes, Iduvina Hernández, a Guatemalan expert and passionate campaigner on security and justice, talked about the struggle against gender and gang violence in her country. Iduvina is the Director of SEDEM (La Asociación para el Estudio y Promoción de la Seguridad en Democracia - Association for the Study and Promotion of Security in Democracy). She is also a Guatemalan journalist and human rights defender who works to challenge the extraordinary and horrific levels of violence and murder against women and young people in Guatemala.

Iduvina was accompanied on her UK engagements by Rosemary Burnett, former director of Amnesty International Scotland, who talked about her own experiences of working to support and protect human rights defenders in Guatemala. Iduvina cited the work of Peruvian Gino Costa, an expert in security and justice in Latin America, who recently published La Ventana Rota (The Broken Window), which compares approaches to tackling crime in New York, San Salvador and Bogota. Costa heavily criticises Central America’s hardline “Mano Dura” (firm hand) policy, which she says has failed on many counts.

Firstly, there has been a lack of consensus and partnership between different sectors of the criminal justice system. Secondly, an explosion in the prison population has exceeded capacity, leading to riots and the strengthening of criminal organisation in prison. Thirdly, mass arrests mean police are no longer able to target the most dangerous criminals, nor can courts handle the increased workload. In contrast, Costa praises work in Colombia that has focused on professionalising the police, attacking the causes of crime, evaluating policies and monitoring police work and consulting with the public on security issues.

“Only if (Guatemala’s) Public Prosecution Service (PPS) is able to take effective and sustainable measures against violence, crime and impunity, will it find that the Guatemalan people will be willing to support and strengthen it,” Iduvina said on the tour. Impunity continues to be a critical issue. As long as human rights violators from the time of the civil war, who perpetrated crimes including genocide, remain beyond the reach of the justice system, it will be difficult to seek justice on contemporary issues such as violence against women and gang violence.

Iduvina believes the United Nations Commission against Impunity (CICIG) is a step in the right direction, although it will take time to make an impact on the ground. In May Guatemala went through a review at the UN Human Rights Council and was able to report progress on many key human rights issues in contrast to previous years.

But the international community must now keep up both pressure and support to ensure that the Guatemalan government implements some of the key recommendations, the activist argues. There are also worrying new developments such as the recent trend of involving the military in matters of internal security. Yet, despite the lack of progress on tackling femicide in Guatemala, Iduvina paints a hopeful picture of efforts to tackle the immense challenges that lie ahead.

Many thanks to all those who supported the Guatemala Solidarity Network (GSN) throughout the speaker tour. For more reports on Iduvina's talks: www.guatemalasolidarity.org.uk

What does SEDEM do?

SEDEM is a Guatemalan NGO that aims to bring the country's civil, military, security and intelligence services under democratic control. It provides training and protection for human rights defenders, and organises seminars, public forums and capacity-building workshops. It also facilitates access to relevant declassified information. SEDEM works with young people to change attitudes and runs special projects for them. In addition, it offers accompaniment to human rights organisations and helps them analyse their security needs, as well as working with women's rights organisations.