Los Acuerdos de Paz

Two weeks ago, on August 3^rd, we had a conference with a professor from San Carlos public university at PEILE (Proyecto Educativo Integral Libertad Ensenanza). Basically, it is a nonprofit organization that works with men, women, children and volunteers to build schools, health centers, etc. The funding for the organization comes mostly from the US, Switzerland and Denmark. Their philosophy is to change social injustices and provide opportunities for all to improve life. There are 13 programs in total, and we have the opportunity to work with the organization when we begin our volunteer work. We can teach a class, and I think I might try to teach a ballet class to women and children once a week, but I need to look into the details. If you want to know more about the organization, check out their website at http://www.peile.org/

But back to the Peace Accords lecture… The professor was extremely passionate about his subject, and talked for 3 hours straight about his work and studies. His introduction alone was an hour long. The lecture was translated for us by Erica.

After 36 years of revolutionary war, the Peace Accords were written. The professor explained 7 causes for the war:

1. Exploitation of work to the Spanish
2. Political exclusion and no participation from general population
3. Bad distribution and destruction of land
4. Lack of work and possibilities to produce
5. Discrimination of Mayans and the Indigenous people
6. Lack of education and health
7. Violations of human rights

He explained that the peace accords occurred in three major phases. The first phase (1991 in Mexico) began with the meeting of three groups, the URNG, government and civil society representatives. A mediator of the accords was to be designated, and the designation jumped around because certain people were not happy with the decisions. In the end, a man named Oscar was chosen. During this first phase, the first accord was written, essentially a framework for a way to discuss future accords.

The second phase began in 1994, with the involvement of the United Nations. During this phase, there were many talks between the government and army about those displaced during the war, and what should be done to bring them back to Guatemala. During this phase, accords 2 and 3 were written.

The third phase began in 1995 and included many advances as churches, Mayans, public colleges, the UN, political parties and Guatemalan workers became involved. During this phase the 13 accords were finished. Here they are:

1. January 1994, Mexico: Framework for the following discussions
2. March 29, 1994, Mexico: Discussed human rights, and the right to life. This subject was widely discussed because the army knew that they were responsible for a lot of the pain and destruction the people of Guatemala had experienced. This accord focused on strengthening human rights institutions.
3. June 17, 1994, Norway: This accord discussed the return of those displaced and the establishment of new territories, healthcare, education and work. In addition, a calendar was put together to outline the steps that were to be taken throughout the peace accords process.
4. June 23, 1994: A truth commission was created to figure out those responsible for mass killings. People existed on both the Army and Guerilla side.
5. March 31, 1995, Mexico: This accord was dedicated to the rights of indigenous identity. Our professor was personally involved with this accord, and he felt it was one of the most important. This accord recognized the many Mayan cultures within Guatemala and provided them representation in the government. This was not successful as he had hoped, and he feels that unfortunately, Guatemala hasn’t advanced much in 15 years.
6. May 6, 1990: This accord focused on socioeconomic reforms. A fiscal pact was formed to make rich people pay their taxes, and land was redistributed to peasants. This was not entirely fair, however, because the poor were forced to buy the land they had been working on for centuries, land they called their own. If they were unable to pay, the government took it away and sold it to others. In addition, the best land was expensive, and many farmers were relocated to new land where they could not grow the same products to which they were accustomed.
7. (The professor stopped giving exact dates at this point) This accord dealt with civil society and strengthening, organizing and encouraging participation in Guatemalan affairs. The accord served two functions: to protect national sovereignty and control narco-trafficking (many ex-army members are now leaders of narco-trafficking, violence groups active today). The goal was to reduce the size of the army, and the size was reduced by 30%, but only the lower class members of the army were dismissed, leaving those with the most influence and power at the top. (Our professor said that if he had the option, he would get rid of the army completely and promote education)
8. This accord served to silence the weapons of the army. In explaining this accord, our professor gave us some frightening facts. Unfortunately, this accord was not well accomplished, and drug-trafficking fills the country with violence. In Guatemala, during the war, the average was 11 deaths per day. Now, the average is 21 deaths per day.
9. This accord focused on constitutional reforms, but unfortunately it was voted that the constitution should not be changed. Our professor felt that votes were bought, and the results of this vote were not productive.
10. In Spain, 1996, the URNG was incorporated. Guerilla fighters were reincorporated back into Guatemalan civilization to act as normal citizens. Unfortunately, our professor feels that many ex-Guerilla members who have joined the government today are giving a bad name to the “left” side of politics, but I am not sure of his exact reason for saying this.
11. This accord provided a clear timeline of when each accord should be implemented.
12. December 29, 1996, everlasting peace was declared.
13. There are 13, but he only explained 12…. So I’m not really sure what the last one was!

It was explained that although good in theory, the peace accords are not very functional in practice. Some of the reasons for this include but are not limited to: lack of governmental support, corruption of funding from other countries, lack of URNG support, little help from social institutions, no transparency, reduction of money sent to health programs, and inept people put in charge of carrying out the accords.

This lecture was interesting and I did learn about both the accords and the many problems that Guatemala still faces. It is interesting to be here during the time of the election, and to hear the opinions of natives and others. Most of what I hear is not positive. The corruption is incredible. Candidates buy their position by heading out to rural areas and providing poor with bags of food or wads of cash. They say “vote for me and we will continue to bring you gifts.” Because most of the Guatemalan population is uneducated, it is easy to gain these votes. But in reality, change will not come with these corrupt leaders.

Educated people that I have spoken with are only voting for the “least worst” candidate. Not one person I have talked to believes that change will come, and they say it is hard to have hope when large companies and the rich are so corrupt.

Learning part of the puzzle of Guatemala’s history through this lecture was interesting, and I look forward to continue learning. As I have said before, I would like to hear the other side of the story, but I think I might have to search that out on my own.