Guatemala: Cerigua Weekly Briefs #17 5/6/99 Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit source - cerigua CERIGUA WEEKLY BRIEFS, NUMBER 17, MAY 6, 1999 This week's stories: *By Hook or by Crook: Convicted PACs Freed *Labor March Calls for Minister's Resignation *Coffee Barons Seek to Abolish Minimum Wage on Farms *Campesino Activists Allegedly Blacklisted *Referendum: TSE Accuses Congress of Favoring "Yes" Vote *Government Partially Retreats on Budget Increase *Campesino Activist Disappears *Land Dispute Resolved Through Mediation By Hook or by Crook: Convicted PACs Freed Guatemala City, May 3. Seventeen men, convicted of crimes committed while serving as members of the now defunct Civil Defense Patrols (PACs), obtained their freedom this week -- five by court order and the rest by force. The provincial capital of Huehuetenango woke April 30 to see a mob of some 600 people armed with machetes and homemade bombs marching toward the local police station. The crowd stormed the building, broke through the main door and pulled 12 ex-patrollers from its holding cells. The tiny contingent of police officers on duty made no effort to resist. The escaped prisoners were each serving a 25-year sentence for their role in the murder of Juan Chanay Pablo, an activist with the Committee for Campesino Unity (CUC) who died after the patrollers opened fire on a 1993 protest against the paramilitary units in Colotenango, Huehuetenango. The PACs had wounded two other protesters and a photographer as well. Colotenango locals say the upcoming transfer of the prisoners from Huehuetenango to the Cantel Prison Farm in Quetzaltenango province may have motivated the breakout. The mob action also follows a judge's decision two days earlier to ratify their sentences. According to the CUC and the National Widows Coalition (CONAVIGUA), the spectacular rescue "was neither a random nor spontaneous act." Representatives of both organizations say they have information that indicates that former PAC chiefs in the region planned the attack one week in advance and had called on other ex-patrollers to take part. Witnesses added that the prisoners' relatives were also involved in the disturbance. The National Civilian Police force has sent reinforcements to the area in an attempt to apprehend the fugitives, but the men remain at large. In related news, on April 28 in Guatemala City, the Third Appeals Court acquitted five former civil defense patrollers who had been convicted by a lower court for their part in the 1993 murder of newspaper owner and politician Jorge Carpio Nicolle and three companions. Citing insufficient evidence against the prisoners, the court ordered the immediate release of Juan Acabal Patzan, who was serving a 30-year prison sentence for the crime, brothers Marcelino and Nazario Tuy Taniel, sentenced to five and four years in prison, respectively, and the remaining two men. At the same time, the court ordered further investigations into the conduct of the accused and of others who had deliberately obstructed efforts to bring the case to trial. Carpio's widow, Marta Arrivillaga, said she trusted that the new investigation "will be more diligent and result in the identification of those responsible." But co-plaintiff Karen Fischer sounded pessimistic. "How is a new investigation going to be carried out if evidence has gone missing and a new ballistic report (of the gun allegedly used in the murders) can't even be done because the cartridges and shells have disappeared?" she asked. Legal proceedings into the murders have been marred by loss of evidence, false testimonies and accusations of judicial bias. The case has passed through the hands of nine different judges and 11 state prosecutors. Some of the prosecutors resigned after receiving threats. Labor March Calls for Minister's Resignation Guatemala City, May 2. This year on Labor Day, workers called for an end to growing repression against their organizations and the resignation of the labor minister. Many of the slogans chanted yesterday during the workers' traditional march to the National Palace echoed those of other years. The protesters once again decried the government's neoliberal policies and privatization schemes, rising prices and sinking wages. But this year Labor Minister Luis Linares drew almost as much fire as the government in general. Workers accused the minister of showing "clear favoritism toward the business class" and of an "evident incapacity to achieve dialogue and reach accords." During Linares' time at the head of the ministry, anti-union practices have proliferated and major labor conflicts remain unresolved. This year's march also saw calls from most of the labor unions present in favor of the proposed constitutional reforms that will go to referendum later this month. One novelty in the march was the presence of a delegation of child laborers. The plight of working children has received growing attention in recent years and defense of their rights is slowly being incorporated into the labor agenda nationally and internationally. To encourage this trend, the International Labor Organization recently joined forces with local union federations in an effort to ensure that working children are protected, fairly paid and that their right to an education is guaranteed. The project, financed by the Norwegian government, seeks to familiarize unions with the labor issues faced by working children and train labor leaders in tools such as public awareness campaigns, collective bargaining, and organizing child workers in order to combat the abuses suffered. Child advocacy groups estimate that some 2 million children nationwide labor for their keep. Coffee Barons Seek to Abolish Minimum Wage on Farms Guatemala City, April 29. Coffee producers have proposed eliminating the minimum wage for their farm workers in favor of a piece work system. The National Coffee Association (Anacafi) has suggested paying employees according to their labor output, instead of by the day. Although some activities, such as cutting and pruning, currently operate on this scheme, Anacafi hopes to see the policy extended to all aspects of crop production. The association argues that the initiative will help increase productivity in the sector. Anacafi head Fernando Montenegro said that other coffee-producing countries have already changed to a piece work system and become more efficient in their operations as a result. Workers have been benefited in the process, he added. Montenegro also argues that the minimum wage is unfair to someone who works well and that the possibility of higher salaries for greater output would provide an incentive for farmhands to work harder. Rigoberto Dueqas of the General Guatemalan Workers Central (CGTG) rejected the proposal, saying that coffee plantation owners were only looking for another way to exploit their workers. The minimum wage is the only guarantee that workers have of receiving a steady salary, he said. The current minimum wage in the countryside is Q19.65 (US$2.75) per day. According to Labor Ministry officials, joint discussion of the idea by labor, business and government representatives has yet to take place, but they stressed that workers should receive at least the equivalent of the legal minimum wage should the proposed policy come into effect. An estimated 400,000 Guatemalans work on the nation's coffee plantations. Campesino Activists Allegedly Blacklisted Guatemala City, April 28. Plantation owners in Quetzaltenango province have allegedly drawn up a blacklist of the names of campesino activists in the region. Oswaldo Saquich of the Quetzaltenango Workers Union told reporters of the daily Siglo Veintiuno that a blacklist containing the names of campesinos who have promoted their labor rights has been circulating among the coffee producers of the province. "These campesinos are trying in vain to look for work in this country, but the plantation owners tell each other not to hire anyone whose name appears on the list," Saquich said. According to Saquich, many farm workers have been forced over the border in Mexico because they cannot find work here. "We know that there are more than two thousand campesinos who used to work on the coffee plantations of the coastal plain, and who were fired for different reasons," Saquich said. During a recent forum attended by the National Coffee Association and various labor unions, coffee industry representatives denied that any blacklist existed and said that the layoffs were due to economic problems such as falling international coffee prices and devaluation of the national currency. Referendum: TSE Accuses Congress of Favoring "Yes" Vote Guatemala City, April 30. With less than two weeks to go before Guatemalans head to the polls to vote on a series of proposed constitutional reforms, legislators and electoral officials are at loggerheads over how publicity of the amendments should be handled. The row started yesterday, after the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) published a resolution prohibiting a congressional media campaign alredy underway to publicize the reforms' content. According to the tribunal, the campaign violates the country's electoral laws because it promotes the "yes" vote. "Article 223 of the Elections and Political Parties Act expressly prohibits during any electoral process the use of state resources for electoral propaganda," the resolution states. In addition, the TSE notes that when it called the referendum it specifically warned Congress against promoting either the "yes" or "no" response to the questions on the ballots. But the legislators denied that they had tried to sway the vote and said they would appeal the resolution. "Abstention is very high and we wanted to prevent it, which is why we decided that Congress should advocate the vote," said congressional president Leonel Lopez Rodas in the House's defense. Outside the legislature, the campaigns both for and against the reforms have swung into full gear, and the "no" side appears to be gathering force. The Association of Dignitaries of the Nation, whose members helped write the Constitution now in force, spoke out against the package, arguing that the amendments could destabilize the country. The Evangelical League and three small political parties -- the Democratic Conciliatory Action (ARDE), the National Liberation Movement (MLN) and the Democratic Union (UD) -- have also called for a "no" vote. For its part, the Pro-Fatherland League has threatened to present a constitutional challenge to several articles. Nonetheless, many analysts estimate that the "yes" campaign, which got off to an earlier start and has focused its energies on public awareness campaigns on the content of the proposed changes, is still in the lead. Just last week, a new coalition of business-people, former military officials, academics, unionists and indigenous representatives -- the Citizens Group for "Yes" -- joined the call in favor of the reforms. The amendments, which will be put to popular vote next May 16, contain several of the most important provisions laid down in the 1996 peace accords, including clauses aimed at recognizing the rights of the nation's indigenous majority, and restrictions on the military's duties and scope of operations. Government Partially Retreats on Budget Increase Guatemala City, May 2. The government has altered its plan to increase public spending this year by three billion quetzales (US$428.6 million). Finance Minister Pedro Lamport and central bank president Edin Velasquez announced April 29 that the executive branch will change the destination, but not the amount, of the budget increase that was approved by Congress less than a month ago. At the same time, however, the administration plans to cut Q1.2 billion (US$171 million) from the original 1999 budget of Q19.2 billion (US$2.7 billion), that Congress passed last November. The decision was made after consulting with the economic cabinet and other economic officials, they said. Under the new plan, instead of spending an additional Q2.2 billion (US$314 million) on public works and social investment, the government will set aside only Q1.3 billion (US$186 million) of last month's increase for this purpose, Lamport said. The remaining Q1.7 billion (US$243 million) would go towards paying off the public debt, which currently stands at Q8 billion (US$1.1 billion). "We don't want the next government to encounter an uncontrolled economy," the minister told reporters. "With these measures, President (Alvaro) Arze will be able to hand over a healthy economy with sustained growth and low inflation." According to Velasquez, the adjustments will keep inflation rate stable, "not beyond five or seven percent." The change in policy follows widespread criticism of the projected hike in public spending, especially from the leading economic think tanks. These argued that the move could have a negative impact on the economy. Other observers had charged that the budget increase was politically motivated, a way of buying votes through the construction of public works leading up to the general elections later this year. According to Carmen Urmzar, director of the Center for National Economic Research (CIEN), Lamport and Velasquez' announcement sends a positive signal to financial authorities both within Guatemala and internationally. But regardless of how the money is spent, negative economic effects still loom, she warned. To forestall them, the government "should continue to act prudently and avoid letting political decisions put the country's economic stability at risk," she said. The adjustments to the budget increase will be presented to Congress for approval. Campesino Activist Disappears Guatemala City, May 2. A leading campesino activist in Izabal province has been reported missing. Carlos Coc Rax, a board member of the El Estor Association for the Development of the Maya Queqchi People, has not been seen since April 21, according to a statement by the Center for Human Rights Legal Action. The activist disappeared after returning to El Estor from Guatemala City, where he was trying to resolve land conflicts involving 10 rural communities. Coc was last seen by his brother, Javier, at 7:30 p.m. near the municipal dock, where the peasant leader was to take a boat that belonged to Las Casas ranch to his village, Santa Rosa Balandra. Although so far no clues as to Coc's whereabouts have turned up, the Human Rights Center reports that for the past several months, rancher Waldemar Lorenzana, who is embroiled in a land dispute with Santa Rosa Balandra, has sent Coc death threats. El Estor has a long history of land conflicts pitting indigenous communities against big landowners. According to the human rights organization, encroachment on national and communal lands by local landowners, illegal and violent evictions and threats and intimidation against the communities' defenders are common occurrences. Although Coc's disappearance has been reported to local and regional authorities, investigations into his whereabouts have yet to begin, the center's statement concludes. Land Dispute Resolved Through Mediation Solola, April 29. A seven-year land conflict was laid to rest this week through a negotiated accord between the Solola village of San Jorge la Laguna and local land owners. In the accord, mediated with the help of the Coalition of Solola Mayan Organizations, the owners of El Jaibal estate agreed to cede 34 acres of the land under dispute to the villagers and make an undisclosed cash payment for the rest. For its part, the government also pledged to provide housing projects, sewers and better roads to the community. According to coalition representative Bartolo Penjoj, El Jaibal's owners had threatened for years to evict San Jorge residents from the lands where they lived, even though the villagers claimed they had prior rights to the property. Talks to resolve the dispute peacefully began last year. The agreement was witnessed by local authorities, government officials, and international observers. **************************************************************** Cerigua Weekly Briefs are published 48 times a year by the Centro de Reportes Informativos de Guatemala Publisher: Ileana Alamilla Editor: Ruth Taylor Cerigua 2a Calle 1-42, Zona 1, Guatemala, Guatemala Tel/FAX: 502 238 1456 502 221 2521 E-mail: cerigua@guate.net ************************************************************** SUBSCRIBE TO CERIGUA WEEKLY BRIEFS! 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