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TITLE: GUATEMALA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1994
AUTHOR: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DATE: FEBRUARY 1995
GUATEMALA
Guatemala's 1985 Constitution calls for election by universal
suffrage of a one-term President and a unicameral Congress. It
also mandates an independent judiciary and a Human Rights
Ombudsman, who is elected by and reports to the Congress. On
June 5, 1993, Congress elected then Human Rights Ombudsman
Ramiro De Leon Carpio to finish the presidential term of Jorge
Serrano, who had been constitutionally deposed from office
following his attempt to seize full power. President De Leon
launched an anticorruption campaign that led to a political
confrontation with the legislature and Supreme Court, both
widely seen as corrupt. This confrontation was finally
resolved with a January 30 referendum on constitutional
changes, which led to new congressional elections in August and
the October replacement of the Supreme Court.
The armed forces operate with considerable institutional and
legal autonomy, particularly in security and military matters.
With the entry into force of the new Criminal Procedures Code,
military personnel accused of committing common crimes are
subject to trial in civilian courts. The 43,000-man army,
which has responsibility for national security, has fought a
leftist insurgency for more than three decades. The Minister
of Government oversees the National Police and the Treasury
Police, which share responsibility for internal security with
the army. In March President De Leon appointed the then head
of army intelligence as Vice Minister of Government, reversing
a trend he began upon taking office of removing military
personnel from civilian law enforcement positions, but he
removed him at the end of the year. The Government announced
the establishment of a civilian intelligence service, intended
to diminish presidential reliance on military intelligence.
An estimated 430,000 men serve in civil self-defense committees
called Civil Defense Patrols (PAC's), some of which conduct
counterinsurgency patrols in rural areas. Although these are
ostensibly voluntary, the Human Rights Ombudsman and the
Catholic Archbishop's human rights office reported that in some
regions PAC members were compelled to join the patrols, in
violation of the Constitution. Security forces and especially
PAC's and civilian military commissioners--who are the
intermediaries between the PAC's and the armed forces--
committed numerous serious human rights violations.
The Government and the leftist Guatemala National Revolutionary
Unity (URNG) insurgents resumed peace talks in January and
reached a human rights accord in March. Many human rights
monitors criticized the Government for being lax in fulfilling
its commitments under the March accord. The agreement, which
took force immediately, led to the November introduction of a
U.N. human rights verification mission into Guatemala. At
year's end, peace negotiations were continuing.
The agriculture-based, private sector-oriented economy was
projected to grow by approximately 4 percent in real terms in
1994, which would produce an increase in per capita income of
about 1 percent. Inflation was expected to exceed 10 percent.
There is a marked disparity in income distribution, and poverty
is pervasive, particularly in the large indigenous community.
Both government authorities and guerrilla groups committed
serious human rights abuses during the year. While human
rights activists now have greater freedom to report, comment,
and denounce abuses, statistics prepared by the Archbishop's
human rights office, utilizing media reports and interviews
with victims, show a substantial increase in human rights
violations, especially extrajudicial killings. The Ombudsman's
office, which compiles data based on personal interviews with
victims and their families, noted that reports of human rights
complaints increased from 1993. PAC's, military commissioners,
members of the army, police, and guerrillas, as well as
leftwing and rightwing extremist groups, all committed major
violations, including extrajudicial killings, political
kidnapings, death threats, and forced recruitment. Political
killings, for example, continued at an alarming rate, and the
Government failed to investigate them adequately or to bring
perpetrators to justice. Government forces and unknown
perpetrators increased attacks on labor union leaders and
members, involving killings, death threats, physical abuse, and
other forms of mistreatment and harassment. Guerrilla abuses
included kidnapings, the widespread use of mines and explosives
in civilian areas, forced recruitment of children, and reprisal
attacks against persons who refused to pay extortion. Both
legal and societal discrimination against women continued, as
did societal abuse of children and discrimination against
indigenous peoples.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
Politically motivated killings continued and, due to the lack
of political will and law enforcement resources, with few
exceptions the Government failed to investigate them fully or
to detain or prosecute the perpetrators. Individual members of
the security forces (military, PAC's, military commissioners,
and the police), leftist guerrilla and rightwing extremist
groups were responsible for political and extrajudicial
killings. The Human Rights Ombudsman's office listed 287 cases
of possible extrajudicial killings. The Archbishop's human
rights office reported 355 extrajudicial killings in 1994,
compared with 248 in 1993 and 204 in 1992. The Church office
labeled 42 of the extrajudicial killings as definitely
political and 237 as presumed political. Neither human rights
office broke down the figures according to the organization
believed to be responsible, but both government security forces
and leftist guerrilla forces committed such offenses.
PAC leaders and military commissioners are feared in many rural
communities. They enjoy army backing and, often, de facto
immunity from prosecution. The Archbishop's human rights
office reported that the executive branch failed to carry out
arrest warrants against 24 military commissioners and PAC
members for their involvement in human rights crimes. With the
exception of the arrest of a few PAC members accused of
involvement in the 1993 Jorge Carpio murder, the authorities
rarely held PAC members accountable for their crimes.
Despite being aware of the locations of various PAC members
wanted for involvement in the 1993 Colotenango killing of Juan
Chonay Pablo and the 1993 Quiche killing of Tomas Lares
Cipriano, the Government failed to carry out the majority of
the arrest warrants. In the Juan Chonay Pablo killing, which
occurred during an anti-PAC demonstration, the authorities
issued 15 arrest warrants for PAC members but arrested only
2 persons. They released one for insufficient evidence linking
him to the crime; the Public Ministry requested the release of
the other under personal bond. Three more persons turned
themselves in, but the authorities released two of them for
lack of evidence. At the end of the year, no one was in jail
awaiting trial. In March the Inter-American Commission on
Human Rights (IACHR) requested that the Government take
precautionary measures to protect witnesses and victims' family
members. In July based on new evidence of continuing
harassment of these individuals, the IACHR requested the
Inter-American Court of Human Rights to order the Government to
take additional precautionary measures and to dissolve the
local PAC. The Court accepted the request in November and
ordered the Government to take these additional measures, which
the Government agreed to do. However, the Court did not agree
to order the Government to dissolve the PAC's.
In the Lares Cipriano killing, the authorities charged six PAC
members with murdering him after he resigned from their
patrol. The authorities arrested two persons, later released
under personal bonds, dismissed all charges against another
person who turned himself in, and did not carry out arrest
warrants against the remaining three persons.
On May 31, a joint military-police operation arrested four San
Pedro Jocopilas PAC members and military commissioners wanted
for alleged involvement in the July 1993 murder of newspaper
publisher and former presidential candidate Jorge Carpio.
However, judicial authorities later released all four, citing
insufficient evidence tying them to the crime. The Carpio
family appealed the release and criticized the Government for
failure to carry out the arrest warrants for six other PAC
members wanted in this case. On June 26, unknown perpetrators
killed a PAC member accused of having participated in this
matter. On September 7, three other PAC members and military
commissioners wanted by the authorities turned themselves in.
On October 12, the Quiche Department Police Chief, who had
ordered the capture of four PAC members, was murdered.
On December 5, attorneys presented their closing arguments in
the Jorge Carpio murder trial. Only one jailed defendant and
two other defendants currently on bond were present for the
hearing. Both sides will have an opportunity to present new
evidence prior to the trial court's decision. Members of
Carpio's family have been threatened since his death. On June
25, unknown armed persons rammed Karen Fischer de Carpio's car;
when they determined she was not in the car, they left death
threats against Fischer with her driver. Fischer subsequently
left Guatemala with her children for the United States where
she remained for several weeks. After returning to Guatemala,
Fischer met with the then Vice Minister of Government, a
military officer and formerly the director of military
intelligence, whom she later claimed had threatened her if her
family did not desist from assertions that senior military
officers were behind the Carpio murder.
The Archbishop's human rights office reported that army
personnel or former PAC members killed retired army officer
Lieutenant Diaz on June 20. The killers, who apparently had
participated with Diaz in the 1981-82 Rabinal massacres,
allegedly murdered Diaz to prevent him from publicly commenting
or testifying on the massacres. The Church office asserted
that the deaths of two other Rabinal residents, a military
commissioner and the son of the landowner where exhumations
were taking place, were orchestrated to send a message to the
Rabinal community to remain silent. There are credible reports
by the media and the Archbishop's human right's office that in
July the army conducted house-to-house inspections and
interrogations in the community and told male residents in a
community meeting not to participate in the exhumations. While
not admitting these events took place, the authorities
transferred the senior officer who allegedly called the meeting.
On April 1, Constitutional Court president Epaminondas Gonzalez
Dubon was killed while returning from Holy Week religious
processions; the motive behind the crime remains undetermined.
Initially, many believed that the murder was an intimidation
attempt by those wishing to destabilize the De Leon
administration or a reprisal directed at the judge for his
anti-Serrano role in May 1993. On April 26, the Government
announced the arrest of 12 persons, members of an alleged car
theft ring, 4 of whom were said to have participated in the
shooting. Only two remain in jail awaiting trial; the
authorities released the others due to insufficient evidence.
On November 11, during a University of San Carlos student
demonstration against an increase in national bus fares,
student activist Mario Sanchez Lopez was killed after police
pursued demonstrators onto the barricaded university grounds in
response to student-made Molotov cocktails and shots fired from
the interior of the university. According to the government
autopsy, Lopez died of gunshot wounds from unknown assailants.
However, credible eyewitnesses' reports and photographs also
detail the police beating Lopez. These eyewitnesses also
reported that nonstudents had provoked the confrontation with
the police. Soon afterward, the Prosecutor General called for
the courts to carry out arrest warrants for the police officers
who participated in the disturbance. However, the trial judge
sent the case back to the prosecutor's office requesting more
information.
Unknown persons have also targeted journalists for killing and
acts of violence (see Section 2.a.).
On August 24, police killed 2 persons and wounded 11 when they
used excessive force to dislodge striking workers from a ranch
known as "La Exacta" in Coatepeque. A third person allegedly
disappeared; his body was found some distance from the ranch
the following day. The workers had taken over the ranch in an
attempt to pressure their supervisors to comply with a labor
court order that the employers obey labor laws, pay workers the
minimum wage and overtime, as well as grant vacation, sick
leave, and other mandatory bonuses. Rather than comply, the
owners reportedly fired approximately 79 employees. After
initially saying the police had acted in accordance with the
law, President De Leon later expressed his regret for the
tragedy, saying he had misspoken earlier based on preliminary
police reports and that a full investigation would be made. On
September 15, residents found the body of another peasant who
had participated in the strike. The Archbishop's human rights
office reported that this person was kidnaped and then killed
in reprisal for his participation in the strike. Initially, 23
police officers were brought before the court but were later
released pending investigation. To prevent possible
retaliation against the workers, the judge also ordered that
the police stay away from the ranch.
The Archbishop's human rights office said the URNG's "united
front" was responsible for the early September murder of army
reserve junior officer Amarildo Sanan Hernandez in
Chimaltenango. Guerrillas stopped Sanan, who was dressed in
civilian clothes, at a roadblock, where he drew a revolver to
defend himself. A guerrilla shot Sanan in the leg; he then
attempted to crawl away, but the guerrillas fired at him again,
immobilizing him. As Sanan lay unable to move, the guerrillas
searched him and discovered a military leave document,
whereupon they struck him with fatal machete blows across the
face and neck.
There was some progress in certain past high-profile cases. On
February 8, the Supreme Court confirmed the 25-year sentence
given to former government security agent Noel De Jesus Beteta
for the 1990 killing of Myrna Mack. The Court left legal
proceedings open against the alleged intellectual authors of
the crime, former senior military officers who appealed the
decision to the Constitutional Court. In December the
Constitutional Court ruled in favor of Helen Mack, Myrna's
sister, that the case against the intellectual authors may
proceed. However, it failed to overrule a Supreme Court
decision denying her request that it order the release of
executive branch documents concerning her sister's murder. The
executive branch maintained it did not have any files not
already in the hands of the court.
On May 18, the court of appeals confirmed the 2-year suspended
sentence and $40 fine against the corporal whose absence from
post facilitated the May 1993 escape of Captain Hugo Contreras,
who had just been convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison
for killing U.S. citizen Michael Devine in 1990. Captain
Contreras remains a fugitive. On September 6, the Supreme
Court confirmed the 30-year sentence given the five enlisted
men convicted in the Devine murder. However, the Government
never brought to trial the senior officers believed to be
involved in covering up the crime. Two relatives of witnesses
who testified at the Devine trial (one civilian and one
soldier) were killed; another (a soldier) was shot in the leg
under suspicious circumstances. The dead soldier was found
with his tongue cut out, hands mutilated, and a bullet wound in
his skull. Additionally, two other relatives have been targets
of intimidation.
The Blake family, who in 1993 filed a petition with the IACHR
accusing the Government of institutional responsibility for and
coverup of the 1985 abduction and murder of U.S. citizens
Nicholas Blake and Griffith Davis by PAC members, continued to
pursue their case. In December 1993, a Blake relative met with
President De Leon and sought unsuccessfully a settlement in
lieu of petitioning the IACHR.
On March 18 and August 22, the Constitutional Court dismissed
appeals filed by 21 former "Hunapu" anticrime task force police
officers over their lengthy (more than 20 years) prison
sentences, which had been previously confirmed by the Supreme
Court. The officers had been found guilty in the 1992 death of
university student Julio Rigoberto Cu Quim and injury to six
other students. The case remains under Supreme Court review.
The IACHR reported that, on September 11, a leading witness and
survivor of the 1988 "white van" case, Oscar Vasquez, was
killed along with his son. In this case, which remains before
the Commission, Treasury Police personnel are accused of having
kidnaped, tortured, and assassinated civilians in 1988. During
a subsequent investigation, a judge involved in the case was
abducted and his assistant killed.
There was no progress in resolving numerous other outstanding
extrajudicial killings, including the 1989 disappearances and
murders of university students, the 1990 Hector Oqueli
Colindres and Gilda Flores killings, the 1990 disappearance of
Maria Tiu Tojin and her daughter, the 1991 murder of police
detective Jose Luis Merida Escobar, the 1991 disappearance of
Diego Domingo Martin, the 1992 kidnaping, torture, and murder
of Huehuetenango peasant Lucas Perez Tadeo, the 1993 shooting
of street children Henry Yubani Alvarez and Francisco Tziac,
the 1993 shooting of student protester Abner Abdiel Hernandez
Orellana, or past kidnapings and murders of various members of
the Runujel Junam Council of Ethnic Communities (CERJ), a
rural-based human rights organization. The Government's
frequent inability to deter, prosecute, or punish those
responsible for such offenses is a major impediment to human
rights progress.
b. Disappearance
The Archbishop's human rights office reported 41 forced
disappearances, as compared with 45 in 1993. It labeled 1
disappearance definitely political and classified 32 as
presumed political. Victims included a human rights activist,
union employees, private sector employees, entrepreneurs,
farmers, a soldier, a policeman, and others. The Ombudsman's
office received 60 complaints of forced disappearance. The
Government did not identify or prosecute the perpetrators of
any of these disappearances.
Sister Dianna Ortiz returned to Guatemala in January and again
in November to press authorities to take action on her 1989
kidnaping and torture case. In January she accompanied
Guatemalan officials on judicial inspections of the Guardia De
Honor barracks and the old military academy. Ortiz identified
the latter as the place where she was sexually abused and
tortured. Shortly after entering the facility, Ortiz was
overcome by emotion and unable to identify the specific site of
the violations, which she says occurred in the basement of the
facility. However, the inspection team failed to discover any
subterranean levels. The army maintains none ever existed. A
previously filed petition on this case remained pending before
the IACHR at year's end.
On January 12, Lorenzo Quiej Pu, a member of CONDEG, an
organization dedicated to helping Guatemalans who have been
internally displaced due to the armed conflict, disappeared
after leaving his home. Members of CONDEG and Quiej family
members reported that prior to the disappearance, they had
received threats stemming from the organization's occupation of
privately owned land. The authorities charged no one with this
disappearance.
The whereabouts remain unknown of San Marcos PAC members
Margarito Lopez and Obdulio Zapeta, army enlisted man Diego
Chel Matom, and farmers Ramona Munoz and Maritza Gil who were
allegedly kidnaped in 1993 by guerrillas. Reliable reports
link the guerrillas to various kidnapings for profit, including
that of wealthy industrialist Fraterno Vila.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution provides for the integrity and security of the
person. However, as in past years, many bodies were found
throughout the country bearing signs of severe disfigurement or
post mortem mutilation. The Human Rights Ombudsman's office
listed 18 potential cases of torture in 1994. The Archbishop's
human rights office listed 17 cases of torture, compared with
18 cases in 1993. In a typical case, unknown armed men
kidnaped a law student in January after he left work, then beat
him, burned him with cigarettes, and left him unconscious.
There were credible reports of mistreatment by security forces,
including sexual abuse of minors and adults, and use of
excessive force by police at the time of arrest. Additional
reports indicated that, especially in rural areas, the URNG
guerrillas, the army, civil defense patrols, military
commissioners, and the police at times used excessive force
against the civilian population. CERJ reported that Juan
Osorio Vasquez filed a legal complaint alleging that on July
21, PAC members had accused him of being a guerrilla, kidnaped
him, tied a rope to his neck, hung him from a beam, and left
him for dead. Family members later arrived and rescued Osorio.
Some peasants in areas of conflict around Huehuetenango have
alleged to the army that members of "Comite De Unidad
Campesino," a farm workers' organization composed of indigenous
people, have threatened them with death due to their allegiance
to the army.
Casa Alianza, an organization dedicated to assisting street
children, reported five instances in which National Police
abused street children between January and late December. On
March 3, Casa Alianza filed charges against four police
officers accused of inducing street children to steal for
them. The police never formally charged the accused and
instead transferred them to another part of Guatemala City. On
July 14, the National Police referred a case of police abuse
against a minor to the courts after concluding that five
policemen had abused their authority in the March 4 beating of
Luis Antonio Roldan Izeppi. Casa Alianza also filed charges
against the National Police for an August 15 incident in which
three policemen sprayed paint thinner at the face of sleeping
street child Luis Alfredo Bonilla Juarez. On December 11,
three National Police officers chased six street children, who
were attempting to steal another street child's shoes, to Casa
Alianza offices. The police caught up with four children at
the door step, beat them, and arrested one child. There were
numerous other reports of policemen illegally detaining street
children; the authorities rarely took action in any of these
incidents.
Casa Alianza also reported that private security guards
routinely abuse street children and that this abuse has led to
the death of seven children. While a number of cases of
national and private police abuse remain pending, there have
been no successful convictions.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
Despite legal safeguards, there were frequent credible reports
of arbitrary arrest by the security forces, incommunicado
detention, and failure to adhere to the prescribed time limits
for legal procedures. The law requires a court-issued arrest
warrant unless a person is caught in the act of committing a
crime. Police may not detain a suspect for over 6 hours
without bringing the case before a judge. The law provides for
bail and access to lawyers. The authorities arrested 17,823
persons in 1994; of those, 3,872 persons remain in jail
awaiting trial, which represented 71 percent of the total
prison population.
The security forces routinely ignore writs of habeas corpus in
cases of illegal detention. There are no reliable data on the
number of arbitrary detentions. The Archbishop's human rights
office charged that prisoners are sometimes not released in a
timely fashion after completing their sentences due to the
failure of judges to issue the necessary court order.
The Constitution prohibits exile and it is not practiced.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The judicial system is ineffective and often unable to ensure a
fair trial. However, defendants have the right to be present
at trials and to legal representation. An appeals court
automatically reviews convictions. The Constitution provides
for an independent judiciary composed of a Constitutional
Court, a Supreme Court, appeals courts, and several courts of
special jurisdiction, such as labor courts. The Supreme Court
appoints judges; the Congress appoints magistrates, or
appellate court judges, from a list prepared by a selection
committee composed of judges, lawyers, and university deans.
The new Criminal Procedures Code, which took effect on July 1,
effects significant changes in the way criminal trials are
conducted. These include new provisions for a public defender
to provide legal counsel to the accused, especially important
in the new oral trial setting. The new Code also modified the
Military Code of Justice to extend jurisdiction by civilian
courts over military personnel for offenses "not essentially
military in nature." These reforms will be phased in once the
Government drafts specific implementing rules or regulations.
Prior to the Code's enactment, military courts retained
jurisdiction over military personnel, including military
commissioners who commit crimes while on official business,
thus limiting the ability of civil courts to prosecute persons
under military control in human rights abuse cases. PAC
members are civilians and are not under military jurisdiction.
The following factors hampered the Code's implementation: A
lack of funding for education, political differences between
the executive and judicial branches, intransigence by many
members of the criminal bar, constitutional challenges, and
inadequate preparation by law enforcement agencies. As of
early December, only three oral trials had been conducted, as
required under the new procedures. Meanwhile, the backlog of
criminal cases continued to mount.
Most human rights violations are not investigated; security
force personnel are reluctant to investigate cases potentially
involving colleagues. Police are very poorly paid, relatively
few in number, and lack adequate resources and training.
Judges are susceptible to intimidation and corruption and
suffer from low pay, bad working conditions, and low morale.
Officials from the Archbishop's human rights office and the
Human Rights Ombudsman's offices, including the Ombudsman
himself, have received threats.
There were public accusations that the Supreme Court pressures
lower court judges to decide cases in line with its wishes. In
1993 the Constitutional Court ruled that the Supreme Court
practice of arbitrarily transferring justices was
unconstitutional, thereby limiting one means of Supreme Court
interference in lower court cases.
Members of the judiciary also continued to receive threats in
an attempt to influence decisions or as reprisals for past
decisions. In February Judge Yolanda Perez received death
threats after she appeared at a local army base with the local
auxiliary ombudsman for human rights requesting to see a
serviceman reported to be missing. Cotzumalguapa justice of
the peace Carlos Humberto Dardon Reyes reported receiving death
threats after he sent U.S. citizen Melissa Larson to the
Escuintla department court house for her protection in March,
after a mob wrongly accused her of transporting baby organs in
her backpack. In July third district appellate court judge and
judicial reform activist Maria Eugenia Villasenor reported she
and other appellate magistrates had been harassed in attempts
to influence decisions in high profile cases. (The third
district court had issued rulings in a variety of cases
involving the security forces.) On August 29, a policeman
assigned to protect Villasenor was kidnaped, interrogated, and
assaulted. Following this incident, Villasenor left the
country for a number of weeks.
On January 19, unknown persons purposely set fire to the
judicial records building in Santa Cruz De Quiche, which held
numerous files regarding PAC abuses. Quiche Judge Francisco
Perez stated that just before the fire he received threats from
Joyabaj PAC members attempting to persuade him to release two
of its members charged with committing multiple crimes,
including the deaths of numerous persons.
Corruption continues to plague the proper functioning of the
police force. On June 25, a live grenade was tossed at the
residence of anticorruption transit police chief Ernesto Ruiz
Saenz De Tejada. Ruiz was not injured in this attack, but he
resigned from the police force shortly afterward.
There are no known political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The Constitution provides for the inviolability of home,
correspondence, and private documents, but the authorities do
not always respect these provisions. Elements of the security
forces continue to monitor private communications. Many human
rights monitors reported receiving threats in the form of
surveillance, telephone calls, and anonymous letters.
On March 11, a year after an arrest warrant had been issued,
Juan Jose Garcia Orellana, a postal control officer charged
with operating a mail espionage ring in the post office for the
presidential security staff under the Serrano administration,
turned himself in to judicial authorities. The authorities are
still gathering evidence in this case.
Through July, officials enforcing the military draft continued
to stop vehicles and enter homes and places of business without
legally required court orders. Prior to August, under
recruitment practices adopted in some departments, potential
draftees receive three induction notices, after which they are
arrested if they do not report for enlistment. Under the law,
such arrests must be effected pursuant to a court order.
On June 14, Amilcar Mendez, the founder of CERJ, filed a
lawsuit against Defense Minister Enriquez charging that the
armed forces' forced recruitment practices violated
constitutional provisions regarding obligatory military
service. However, a court ruled the judicial branch did not
have jurisdiction over this matter because the Minister of
Defense had immunity from prosecution, which only Congress
could remove. It referred the immunity question to the
Congress, which ruled that the case lacked legal merit, thus
effectively dismissing the entire lawsuit.
Through July 30, the Archbishop's human rights office handled
89 individual cases of forced recruitment. In the same period,
the Human Rights Ombudsman's office reported receiving 663
complaints of forced recruitment. The office obtained the
release of 268 persons from military service, of whom 79 were
minors. On June 29, Defense Minister General Enriquez
announced a 6-month moratorium on forced recruitment, which was
confirmed by President De Leon during the June 30 Army Day
celebrations. However, the Ombudsman reported three separate
instances of forced conscription in July. On August 28, the
Defense Ministry once again ordered a suspension of forced
recruitment; since then, there were no further reports of
forced recruitment. The army has continued the practice of
setting up draft boards consisting of the zone military
commander, the local representative of the Human Rights
Ombudsman's office, and other civilian leaders.
The Constitution requires that PAC service be voluntary.
However, army officers, military commissioners, and PAC leaders
often pressure men in areas of conflict to become members.
Nevertheless, PAC's do appear to enjoy some popular support; a
majority of respondents in a recent academic survey conducted
for the Human Rights Ombudsman in seven departments claimed to
be pleased with the PAC membership and with the PAC presence in
their communities. However, some human rights monitors have
charged that PAC members may have felt intimidated by fellow
PAC members and did not give completely candid answers.
In June and July, CERJ filed a legal complaint on behalf of
former PAC member Juan Antonio Chumel with local judicial
authorities and the IACHR stating that since 1988, when Chumel
left the PAC's, PAC members threatened and intimidated Chumel
to the extent that he was forced to leave his community for
fear of his life. There are other credible reports that others
who refused to serve in the PAC's suffered threats and other
abuses.
g. Use of Excessive Force and Violations of Humanitarian
Law in Internal Conflicts
Guatemala's armed internal conflict entered its 34th year and
continued to be a major cause of human rights violations by
both government and guerrilla forces.
Communities of People in Resistance (CPR), groups of displaced
persons who have lived in remote areas to avoid army control
since the 1980's, claimed army harassment throughout the year,
including late evening helicopter overflights and restriction
of commerce. Reflecting increased security in the valleys, in
February, a number of CPR's came down from the mountains and
established permanent villages.
According to statistics reported by the Archbishop's human
rights office, repeated URNG attacks against civilian
infrastructure targets damaged electrical and communication
facilities and petroleum storage areas. The Church office
reported two persons injured by exploding mines planted by
guerrillas. On August 22, guerrillas fired indiscriminately at
a civilian bus injuring 11 persons and killing 1 during an
attack against army units in Chupol, Chichicastenango. On
various occasions guerrillas have also burned farms and
destroyed property of farm owners who refused to pay extortion.
Terrorist bombings conducted by unknown perpetrators continued
throughout the year. Before the January 30 national
referendum, 25 explosive devices detonated or were deactivated
in Guatemala City alone. Several of these devices were
accompanied by URNG leaflets. Other bomb attacks were believed
to be orchestrated by free-lancing rightist groups opposed to
the referendum. On March 6 and 7, bombs exploded at two key
bridges leading from the capital. The army and the URNG
accused each other of planting the bombs. On September 1, two
more pamphlet bombs exploded in the capital, releasing URNG
literature. The home of a businessman and partial owner of the
newsweekly Cronica was bombed in June. (He is the brother of
former peace talks conciliator and current president of the
Civil Society Assembly, Bishop Rodolfo Quezada.) On September
22, three bombs went off in residential zones, killing one
child who was watching cars in exchange for tips. On several
occasions death threat lists, including the names of human
rights and labor leaders and newspaper journalists, circulated,
but no one listed was injured or killed.
On August 12, a lower court judge dismissed the amnesty granted
four recently captured URNG guerrillas. However, these
guerrillas were freed under a Penal Code provision, a move
considered legally controversial. It had been common
government practice to excuse post-1988 crimes committed by
guerrillas even though the Amnesty Law only applies to
political and related crimes committed before 1988. The
Government appealed this decision and is considering new
amnesty legislation to cover crimes committed after 1988. The
URNG claims it holds no prisoners.
The army continued to deny it has ever held guerrilla leader
Efrain "Everardo" Bamaca or 35 other URNG prisoners of war as
claimed by the American citizen wife of Bamaca. According to
army spokespersons, Bamaca was killed in battle. The
Government denies holding prisoners clandestinely. The
Government also denies reports the U.S. Government received
that the army took Efrain Bamaca captive in March 1992. Those
reports indicated he had been wounded but that his injuries
were not life-threatening. The reports included no information
to indicate that he was alive much beyond the first few weeks
after his capture. The Guatemalan Government filed a writ of
habeas corpus on Bamaca's behalf, and the Supreme Court
assigned the Human Rights Ombudsman to conduct a special 30-day
investigation into the disappearance. The Ombudsman developed
no new leads and turned responsibility for the investigation
back to the Attorney General. The United Nations Verification
Mission, MINUGUA, is assisting in the investigation.
In January the URNG and the Government resumed peace talks with
the United Nations serving as moderator. In late March, the
Government and the guerrillas signed a human rights accord that
called for the immediate establishment of a U.N. human rights
verification mission. Although the start-up of this
international mission was delayed until September, the accord
was a major step forward. As part of its mandate, the U.N.
team will seek to strengthen local institutions dealing with
human rights. In November and December, MINUGUA accompanied
Human Rights Ombudsman officials inspecting army bases,
witnessing the turning in of rifles by PAC members and other
human rights-related activity. Also in March, the Government
and the URNG agreed upon a calendar to address the major
outstanding negotiating issues. In June the two sides signed
accords on "uprooted" peoples and the establishment of a
Historical Clarification Commission to catalog and analyze
human rights abuses related to the guerrilla war. However, the
Commission will not name past violators, and its findings will
not have judicial force. Following signing of this accord,
talks fell into a temporary hiatus. They resumed in late
October to discuss indigenous rights. No agreement was reached
on this issue by the end of the year.
MINUGUA reported that, on December 20, men identified by local
residents as military commissioners and their assistants
threatened MINUGUA officers and human rights activists during a
meeting in Tecpan, Chimaltenango. During the meeting, one of
the armed men grabbed activist Eliseo Calel and beat him.
Calel had been pressing authorities to investigate and
prosecute those responsible for the August 1 death of
Chimaltenango activist Pascual Serech and the August 20 murder
of the judge handling the case, Elias Ogaldez. Ogaldez had
ordered the arrest of a military commissioner alleged to have
been involved in Serech's death.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of expression. There was
no evidence of harassment from senior government officials, but
both major press associations denounced incidents restricting
freedom of the press. The media reported sensitive issues such
as corruption, as well as major human rights stories. They
also publicized communiques from the URNG, leftist groups, and
others opposed to the Government or its policies. Journalists
admit, however, that pressure and fears of reprisal result in
self-censorship and limits on investigative reporting. For
example, there is no open criticism of the military nor is
there open discussion of important issues such as land use,
land ownership, or similar topics that would affect the
interests of powerful economic groups and individuals. Reports
on human rights and narcotic trafficking are carefully written
and sourced so that neither journalists nor their institutions
are put at risk. Radio and television station owners observe
that licensing procedures potentially give the government
powerful leverage over their editorial policies, but they have
not cited any instances in which the De Leon Government
attempted to abuse this power.
Continuing acts of political violence directed against
journalists give credence to their complaints of pressure and
coercion at the working level. Through November the
Archbishop's human rights office recorded 25 separate political
acts against the media: 2 extrajudicial killings, 5 assaults,
and 18 intimidating acts. On March 26, unknown men fired shots
at newspaper reporter Marco Tulio De la Roca, killing him and
injuring his companion. Unknown perpetrators targeted
journalist Hector Adolfo Barrera Ortiz, first by a bomb
explosion outside his home and later by a kidnaping attempt
while at work.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for the right of peaceful assembly
and association. Peaceful demonstrations were common and
demonstrators sometimes occupied government institutions,
including the presidential palace, government ministries, and
the Supreme Court building. In all these cases, the police
acted with restraint, and the authorities negotiated a peaceful
departure of demonstrators. The Government did not interfere
with political associations, although the law nominally
requires organizations to obtain legal status, a cumbersome and
expensive procedure.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for religious freedom, and the
authorities respect it in practice. Religious personnel are
sometimes threatened on political grounds for their human
rights, indigenous rights, and land reform activities.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Government does not restrict foreign travel, nor does it
revoke citizenship for political reasons. The authorities did
not restrict movement inside the country except where the army
and PAC's limited travel in some areas of conflict. Guerrillas
continued to establish roadblocks to rob private citizens,
extort protection payments from businessmen, attack and drain
petroleum trucks, and limit travel in certain rural areas.
Voluntary repatriation of refugees from Mexico continued.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR), 6,011 refugees were repatriated to Guatemala in 1994.
Since the initiation of the program, over 18,000 persons have
returned, despite the lack of suitable land which can support
the returning population.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
Citizens have the right to change their government by peaceful
and democratic means, through secret ballot and universal
suffrage for those 18 years of age and older. Members of the
armed forces and police may not vote. Since the return to
democracy and civilian rule in 1985, there have been seven free
elections. International observers concluded that both the
January 30 national referendum and the August 14 congressional
elections were free and fair.
There are no legal impediments to women's participation in
politics, but women are underrepresented in the political
arena. However, women do hold prominent political positions,
including three cabinet posts. The first President of the
newly elected Congress was a woman, and 5 other women hold
seats in the 80-member body. There are also two female Supreme
Court justices and one female Constitutional Court justice.
Indigenous people enjoy equal rights under the Constitution,
and some have attained positions as army officers (including
one general), judges, and government officials, including a
Cabinet member and five members of the newly elected Congress.
Nevertheless, limited educational opportunity and pervasive
discrimination (see Section 5) lead to their underrepresentation
in politics.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
The Government permits local human rights groups to operate
freely, but the security forces, PAC's, and extremist groups
continued to threaten and use violence against their members.
For example, on January 24 human rights monitor Amilcar Mendez
reported that a masked motorcyclist tried to run over his
16-year-old daughter, Miriam Rocio Mendez, who was en route to
the University of San Carlos. The daughter was uninjured.
Five months later on June 29, the Mendez family reported there
were armed men outside his home. However, when the police were
dispatched to the scene, the armed men had left. In August an
unknown person called a Mendez relative in Guatemala City
stating that Mendez should not return to his home in Quiche
because he would be killed.
Rosalina Tuyuc, director of CONAVIGUA, the National Council of
Guatemalan Widows, reported that during June and July armed
soldiers repeatedly were stationed outside her parents' home in
Chimaltenango. Throughout the year, the army has accused Tuyuc
and CONAVIGUA of being allied with the guerrillas. The army
also charged that one of Tuyuc's brothers is a guerrilla
commander who engineered recent guerrilla attacks. On June 22,
unknown men attacked, stabbed, and robbed Sara Poroj Vasquez,
an officer of the human rights organization GAM, "Grupo De
Apoyo Mutuo", outside her home. No one was apprehended for
this attack.
Disturbed by political activities of some foreign visitors,
immigration authorities in late November began limiting U.S.,
Canadian, and Spanish visitors to 15-day stays (as opposed to
90 days previously). When embassies and individuals protested,
the Government decided to issue all foreign visitors 30-day
stays.
Relations between the executive branch and the Human Rights
Ombudsman, who is congressionally appointed, remain tense. The
Ombudsman repeatedly accused President De Leon, the previous
human rights ombudsman, of not taking action on the numerous
resolutions his office has issued concerning human rights.
However, the current Ombudsman has significantly reduced his
investigative staff, thus limiting his capacity to verify
complaints. On September 7, the Ombudsman called for the
resignation of the National Police director because of
allegations of police abuse in the La Exacta incident (see
Section 1.a.).
High-ranking government officials working in the fields of
human rights and jurisprudence complained publicly and
privately of receiving threats stemming from their interest in
resolving cases related to human rights violations, official
corruption, and drug trafficking.
Both the Ombudsman's office and the Archbishop's human rights
office continued to enjoy widespread public support and
respect. Senior government officials met numerous foreign
officials and human rights monitors. International human
rights monitors travel throughout the country but on occasion
advise local military authorities of their presence to ensure
their safety, particularly in rural areas. Despite a
persistent, 13-year effort, Peace Brigades International, an
international human rights organization which accompanies
persons whose lives may be in danger for their political
beliefs or activities, has been unable to obtain government
recognition. The absence of legal status did not, however,
prevent Peace Brigades or other human rights organizations from
operating openly.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution states that all human beings are free and
equal in dignity and rights and that the State must protect the
life, liberty, justice, security, peace, and development of all
Guatemalans.
Women
The Constitution asserts the principle of equality between the
sexes. Nonetheless, women face job discrimination and on
average receive significantly lower pay than men. They are
primarily employed in low-wage jobs in the textile industry,
agriculture, retail business, and the public sector. More
working women than men are employed in the informal sector of
the economy, where pay and benefits are generally lower. A
1989 survey reported that in Guatemala City women are
underrepresented in high-income categories and overrepresented
among poorly paid workers.
In some cases, domestic laws remain discriminatory against
women, such as the Penal Code's provisions on adultery. Only
women may be charged with adultery, while men fall under a
different statute which is more limited, makes it more
difficult to prove, and carries a lesser penalty.
CONAVIGUA reported that violence against women, including
domestic violence, remains common but receives little
attention. There is no specific law against domestic violence,
although it is considered to fall under other statutes.
Criminal sexual violence often goes unreported by victims, and
relatively few rape cases come to court. The human rights
Ombudsman's office reported receiving 30 complaints per month
of spousal abuse committed by the male spouse.
Children
The Constitution charges the Government with protecting the
physical health and mental and moral well-being of minors.
However, the abuse of street children (see Section 1.c.) is a
serious problem in major cities. Estimated numbers of street
children range between 1,500 and 5,000, with the majority of
these youths concentrated in Guatemala City. These children
are often recruited into thievery or prostitution rings. The
Government and a number of nongovernmental organizations
operate youth centers, but the funds devoted to them are
inadequate for the problem. An accord between Casa Alianza and
the Attorney General's office was not renewed because the De
Leon administration believes that the treatment of street
children is adequately addressed in existing laws.
COPREDEH, the Presidential Human Rights Commission, has formed
a special commission called the Permanent Commission for
Children, composed of Casa Alianza and representatives from the
judicial and executive branches, which met through October to
address the problems of street children. Relations between
Casa Alianza and the National Police have fluctuated and only
improved due to the repeated personal intervention of the
police department's inspector general and the interest of the
department's minors division, office of professional
responsibility, and human rights office. However, the police
department's office of criminal investigations has been
reluctant to release information on past alleged human rights
abuses committed by police officers.
Indigenous People
The Constitution states that Guatemala is composed of diverse
ethnic groups and calls on the Government to recognize,
respect, and promote lifestyles, customs, traditions, social
organization, and the manner of dress of indigenous people.
Indigenous people comprise about one-half the population but
remain largely outside the country's political, economic,
social, and cultural mainstream. Indigenous people suffered
most of the serious human rights abuses described throughout
this report. Rural indigenous men were more likely than urban
dwellers to be drafted by the army or forcibly recruited by
either the army or guerrilla groups. Although the Constitution
accords indigenous people equal rights, in practice they have
only minimal participation in decisions affecting their lands,
culture, traditions, and allocation of natural resources.
Rural indigenous people have limited educational opportunities
and thus have limited employment opportunities. Many
indigenous people are illiterate and do not speak Spanish.
Linguistic barriers hinder interaction with the Government and
limit access to public services, including the judiciary,
because few officials speak any of the 21 indigenous
languages. Indigenous persons arrested for crimes are often at
a disadvantage due to their lack of Spanish. The public
defender's office is charged with providing judicial
translating services but is not sufficiently staffed to cope
with the problem. Under the new Criminal Procedures Code, the
Government is required to provide translating services to all
who need it in criminal proceedings.
People with Disabilities
The Constitution provides that the State should protect
disabled persons. Nonetheless, physically disabled persons are
discriminated against in employment practices, and few
resources are devoted to combat this problem or otherwise to
assist people with disabilities. There is no legislation
mandating provision of accessibility for the disabled.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The Constitution and the Labor Code provide workers complete
freedom of association and the right to form and join trade
unions. Major reforms to the Labor Code in 1992 mandated
concrete steps to improve worker rights by facilitating freedom
of association, strengthening the rights of working women,
increasing penalties for violations of labor laws, and
enhancing the role of the Labor Ministry and labor courts in
enforcing them. All workers have the right to form or join
unions, including public sector employees, with the exception
of members of security forces. National Police officers have
unsuccessfully attempted to form a trade union or association.
Between 5 and 8 percent of the work force is organized. The
993 registered unions in the country are independent of
government and political party domination.
The Labor Code amendments simplified the process for unions to
obtain legal status. This was further revised when the
Minister of Labor made administrative changes to reduce the
number of steps needed within the Ministry for consideration of
union applications, establishing strict timetables and warning
officials that noncompliance with the timetable could lead to
dismissal of those responsible for the delay.
These new regulations accelerated the approval procedure, and
the backlog of union applications was basically eliminated by
midyear. The Labor Ministry has granted legal status to 63
unions since late 1993, and only 13 applications are still
pending. Of the registered unions, 834 are in the private
sector and 159 are in the public sector. The Labor Ministry
initiated a program to assist unions with their applications,
to avoid some of the pitfalls still inherent in the Labor Code.
Workers have the right to strike, but Labor Code procedures
make legal strikes cumbersome. Labor organizers criticize the
requirement that two-thirds of the workers must approve a vote
to strike, the prohibition of strikes by agricultural workers
at harvest time, and the right of the Government to prohibit
strikes which it deems as seriously affecting the national
economy. Those strikes that do occur, frequently in the public
sector, are generally called without legal authorization, and
in practice the Government makes no effort to intervene on the
basis of illegality. Nonetheless, the lack of legal approval
for a strike can be used as a threat against strikers. Public
sector workers held a series of work stoppages in early 1994
and suffered no sanctions for their action. Indeed, the
Government negotiated and reached a peaceful accommodation with
the public labor force.
The law protects workers from retribution for forming and
participating in trade union activities, but enforcement of
these provisions varies. While an increasing number of
employers accept unionization, many routinely seek to
circumvent Labor Code provisions in order to resist union
activities, which many view as historically confrontational and
disruptive. An ineffective legal system and the inadequate
level of penalties for violations has hindered enforcement of
the right to form and participate in trade union activities.
While penalties were increased in the 1992 Labor Code reform,
the previous Supreme Court (replaced in October 1994) delayed
full implementation of the reforms.
Trade union leaders and members were victims of a marked
increase in violence and abuse, such as threats, assassination
attempts, kidnapings, and physical harm. In one incident,
police killed and wounded several persons while attempting to
arrest workers who were illegally occupying a ranch (see
Section 1.a.). The Archbishop's human rights office reported
that unknown assailants killed 5 unionists, injured 2, and
threatened 36, although it is not always clear whether such
violence is union-related. Public sector union leaders, as
well as unionists in the high-profile in-bond export sector,
reported receiving threats against themselves and their
families. Such anonymous threats increased markedly early in
the year when one of the federations of government employees
held a prolonged series of work stoppages for improved wages
and government compliance with previously negotiated
agreements. This dispute was peacefully settled through
negotiations with various union representatives.
On September 30, President De Leon Carpio eliminated--allegedly
without following legally required procedures--the moribund
Committee of National Reconstruction (CNR), a government entity
established to manage recovery from the 1976 earthquake. Many
of the 600 workers who lost their jobs occupied the Committee's
headquarters in an attempt to force the Government to negotiate
severance pay or find them alternative employment. Agustin
Monzon, a member of the CNR union, was allegedly kidnaped on
November 7 and released only after the occupiers agreed to
leave the site peacefully on November 18.
Unions may and do form federations and confederations and join
international organizations.
An active "solidarity" movement claims approximately 100,000
members in over 395 companies. Unions may legally continue to
operate in workplaces which have solidarity associations, and
workers have the right to choose between the two or belong to
both. The Government views these associations as civic
organizations which need not interfere with the functioning of
trade unions. The amended Labor Code stipulates very clearly
that trade unions have the exclusive right to bargain
collectively over work conditions on behalf of workers.
Unionists charge, however, that solidarity associations are
promoted by management to avoid the formation of trade unions
or to rival existing labor unions. There are credible reports
that some of these associations did not always adhere to
democratic principles in their formation and management and
that workers are unable to participate fully and freely in
decision making. Similar credible charges are made against
some trade union organizations.
At the request of trade union leaders, the independent Human
Rights Ombudsman, through his Office for Economic and Social
Issues, receives complaints related to trade union activities.
Union leaders and workers filed a number of complaints with the
Ombudsman during the year, and the Ombudsman has spoken out in
public statements about labor conditions in varying sectors of
the economy. The Ombudsman can investigate their complaints
and issue a statement. He has no enforcement powers but can
attempt to ameliorate the situation through publicity and moral
suasion.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Workers have the right to organize and bargain collectively.
However, the practice of collective bargaining is limited by
the weak structure of the union movement, the lack of
experience with this practice, and the preference of management
in many cases to avoid formal ties with trade unions. While
both management and the unions honored some well-written
collective contracts, in other instances, both parties openly
ignored and violated contracts. Most workers, even those
organized by trade unions, do not have collective contracts to
cover their wages and working conditions, but do have
individual contracts as required by law. Most workers receive
the minimum wages established by bipartite commissions, which
operate under the guidance of the Ministry of Labor.
Employers cannot dismiss workers for participating in the
formation of a trade union; workers file complaints in this
regard with the labor inspectors for resolution. The Labor
Code provides for the right of employers to fire union workers
for cause, permits workers to appeal their dismissal to the
labor courts, and requires the reinstatement of any union
worker fired without cause. The revised Code prohibits
employers from firing workers for union organizing and protects
them for 60 days following the official publication of approval
of the union. It also prohibits employers from firing any
member of the executive committee of a union and protects them
for an additional 12 months after they are no longer on the
executive committee. An employer may fire a member of the
union's executive committee for cause only after a trial and
issuance of a court resolution.
Labor courts responsible for enforcing labor laws continued to
be generally ineffective. Although two new labor courts began
to function, efforts to restructure and modernize the labor
court system made little headway, in part because of tensions
between the executive and judicial branches stemming from
President De Leon's reform efforts. A heavy backlog of labor
cases continues to clog the courts due to corruption,
indolence, and lack of resources. There is only spotty
enforcement of the Labor Code, due to the scarcity of labor
inspectors, corruption, the lack of adequate training and
resources, and structural weaknesses (or the lack of political
will) in the labor court system. Nonetheless, enforcement is
improving as new labor inspectors complete training and begin
work outside the capital, allowing the Ministry of Labor to
increase significantly its rate of inspections. The Ministry
has also increased the number of court cases filed for failure
to comply with the Labor Code and has begun an educational
campaign on worker rights, including providing some documents
in indigenous languages.
Labor laws and regulations apply throughout the country,
including in the few export processing zones (EPZ's). The laws
governing EPZ's are not discriminatory on the subject of
organizing trade unions or collective bargaining. While union
leaders often blame employer pressures and unofficially
restricted access to the EPZ's for their virtual inability to
organize workers in these zones, labor conditions in the EPZ's
are no different from those found outside the zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution bars forced or compulsory labor, and the
practice does not exist. However, human rights and indigenous
groups continue to charge that there is coerced participation
in the PAC's that violates prohibitions against forced labor.
d. Minimum Age for the Employment of Children
Although the Constitution bars employment of minors under the
age of 14, children below this age are regularly employed.
Laws governing the employment of minors are not effectively
enforced, due to the shortage of qualified labor inspectors and
structural weaknesses in the labor court system. Only 5,000
minors have permission from the Labor Ministry to work
legally. Thousands working without legal permission are open
to exploitation, generally receiving no social benefits, no
social insurance, no vacations, and no severance pay, and are
paid below the minimum wage level. The Labor Ministry has a
program to educate minors, their parents, and employers on the
rights of minors in the labor market. Economic necessity,
however, forces most families to have their children seek some
type of employment to supplement the family income. There are
no export industries in which child labor is a significant
factor.
The Constitution provides for compulsory education for all
children up to the age of 12 or to the sixth grade. However,
less than half the population actually receives a primary
education. Child labor is largely confined to small or family
enterprises, to agricultural work, and to the informal sectors
of the economy.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Although the law sets minimum wages, the legally mandated
minimum wage for most unskilled and semiskilled workers is
rarely paid to rural and urban workers. A bilateral committee
representing labor and management in specific economic sectors
is named each year to make recommendations for increases in the
minimum wage. In the event that agreement is not possible, the
Government may decree such increases. In June the National
Association of Coffee Growers (ANACAFE) reached an agreement
with one trade union group representing coffee farm workers
which increased the minimum wage for coffee farm workers by
approximately 30 percent to $2.55 (14.50 quetzals) a day. The
accord also provides for both productivity training and bonus
payments and foresees talks on modernization of the critical
coffee sector.
Following the ANACAFE accord, the Government substantially
increased the minimum wage in the main sectors of the economy
in October. The minimum wage for commercial and industrial
workers is $2.80 (16 quetzals) for an 8-hour workday, including
a required hourly bonus. The minimum wage for farm workers is
$2.55 (14.50 quetzals) per day, plus mandatory and productivity
bonuses. It has been estimated that an urban family of four
needs at least $8.50 (48 quetzales) per day to live, thus the
minimum wage does not provide a decent standard of living. An
estimated 70 percent of the population lives below the poverty
line, including approximately 60 percent of those employed.
The legal workday is 8 hours and the workweek is 44 hours, but
a tradition of much longer hours remains in place due to
economic conditions. The amended Labor Code requires a weekly
paid rest period of at least 24 hours. Trade union leaders and
human rights groups charge that workers are sometimes forced to
work overtime, often without premium pay, or given drugs to
help them work longer in order to meet work requirements.
Labor inspectors report that numerous instances were uncovered
of such abuses, but corruption and inefficiencies in the labor
court system inhibit adequate enforcement of the law.
Occupational health and safety standards are inadequate. As
with other aspects of the labor law, enforcement of standards
that do exist is also inadequate. Workers have the legal right
to remove themselves from dangerous workplace situations, and
the law provides them with protection for their continued
employment. However, few workers are willing to jeopardize
their jobs by complaining about unsafe working conditions.
When serious or fatal industrial accidents do occur, the
authorities generally take no legal steps against those
responsible. The Labor Ministry provides training courses for
labor inspectors in health and safety standards but does not
accord them a high priority due to scarce resources. The
Government does not effectively enforce legislation requiring
companies with more than 50 employees to provide on-site
medical facilities for their workers, although many large
employers do provide such facilities.
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