In Tune With Global Movement, People of Guatemala Are Rising Up for Dignity and Justice
Published on Friday, June 05, 2015
by Common Dreams
In Tune With Global Movement, People of Guatemala Are Rising Up for Dignity and Justice
by Arturo Clark
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Aerial view of a protest in Guatemala City against President Otto Pérez Molina and Vice President Roxana Baldetti for the recent corruption case involving high-level officials that took place on April 25, 2015. (Photo: Carlos Alonzo/AFP)
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A long history of military dictatorships, brutal civil war, and generalized violence fueled by drug cartels and gangs effectively silenced the people of Guatemala for decades. This prolonged period of civic inaction has resulted in widespread feelings of resignation and cynicism that have allowed the status quo to perpetuate itself. That all changed recently, as a citizen movement has taken to the streets amid growing feelings of indignation prompted by the country’s rampant corruption and impunity problems.
Last month, the UN-backed International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), exposed a massive corruption network – involving more than a dozen high-ranking government officials – set up to defraud the state of customs revenues. (prosecutors estimate the amount at US $120 million.) The news rocked the Central American nation, rightfully sparking a feeling of outrage and indignation among Guatemalans.
What began as a call for action on social media by a group of youth has quickly materialized into a series of mass non-violent demonstrations. These protests have quickly scaled up -- the last ones drawing 60,000 people -- bringing together a broad swath of Guatemalan society, which has a history of deep division. Indigenous and mestizos, young and old, rural and urban people have converged to demand an end to the corruption. For the first time in decades, public and private university students have unified and began working together.
The mounting grassroots pressure has already forced the resignation of Vice President Roxana Baldetti whose private secretary has been accused by prosecutors of being the ringleader of the exposed corruption ring. Rather than placating demonstrators, the move galvanized their resolve to pursue deeper change. The emerging citizen movement took the resignation as a first victory and celebrated it in the streets by passionately chanting “yes, we did!” and “this is just the beginning” in the streets amid signs reading, “resign already,” alluding now to President Otto Pérez Molina.
More:
http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/06/05/tune-global-movement-people-guatemala-are-rising-dignity-and-justice