Comments for Poli Sci/Hist 233: Guatemala

Comment on Leaving Santiago: A Transitional Day? by Tempur Mattresses

Tempur Mattresses — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 10:28:03 +0000

Thats a nice post, i know exactly how it feels to leave a place you’ve fallen in love with.. I recently returned from volunteering in Cambodia and it was so hard to leave. Keep up the great work!

Comment on “This is injustice” by TCA peel for in home use

TCA peel for in home use — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 15:36:50 +0000

Injustice is a part of our culture and history and will, unfortunately, always exist in our society. The rich will, as a whole get richer and more powerful, while the poor and destitute will always stay there or be worse off. There will, unfortunately, always be third world countries affected by famine, wars, disease, etc… It is unfortunate and I wish it could be changed, but this is the way it has always been.

Comment on “This is injustice” by gonyali

gonyali — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 13:29:15 +0000

Hey nice gallery!!! I love your works Sohbet Konya

Comment on The continuing struggle of Guatemala´s indigenous population by chongqing china

chongqing china — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 05:00:42 +0000

we were welcomed by both the Comalapa town council and CONAVIGUA, the widows association of Guatemala. Despite the horrific tragedy that struck them

Comment on The continuing struggle of Guatemala´s indigenous population by Matthew

Matthew — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:12:23 +0000

What an horrible story. My thoughts are with Don Andres, may he find strength to carry on.

Comment on Testigo by Renata Avila

Renata Avila — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:39:01 +0000

I am a Guatemalan “ladina” as some call me. I work for Human Rights, I am a lawyer. My whole education was a farse and only because I am curious and I read a lot I could realize that the system was designed to create”compatible citizens”, to neutralize social movements, to cover the truth…

“the degree of inhumanity needs to be acknowledged” as you said on your post. It was extremely brutal, people still remind in extreme poverty and what makes Guatemala transition different from Chile and Canada is that survivors are extremely poor, isolated,vulnerable. They cannot afford by themselves a trial, their voices are hardly heard in media, they lack spaces. And the youth is a-historical, self centered and extremely conservative.

Thank you for caring about people on this side of the World, and feel free to contact me if you need anything

Comment on More about Tuesday (Wednesday’s Post): Secret Archives, Mario, and Jose Garzon. by Lela Betts '90

Lela Betts '90 — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 01:41:02 +0000

In my experience it is easy to become distanced from the gritty reality of life in a place like Guatemala, which is why your trip is so fantastic. This beaurocrat needs to spend some time in Lake Atitlan or many of the other communities in Latin America where basic human needs are not being met.

Comment on Testigo by George Fee '84

George Fee '84 — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 01:44:46 +0000

An eye opening experience for the ‘Fords who experienced Guatemala, I have read your posts and seen your expressed commitment to making sure that this horrendous Civil War will not be forgotten. After I graduated from Haverford in 1984, I moved to Central America, spending three years living in Honduras, two living in Guatemala, and five living in Panama. I was in Guatemala from the latter part of 1988 until mid 1990, a period that saw much bloodshed (though fortunately for me not too much in Izabal where I spent most of my time). While my experience was different than that of someone living in the highlands (where most of the war occurred) I do want to share with you my impression of the most enlightened person whom I met during my time in Guatemala. Ironically, he was a Military Officer, the Commanding Officer of the Guatemalan Naval Forces along the Caribbean. Well read, with a clear sense of history and social justice, he was exactly the type of person needed in a post civil war era. Regardless of the country where it occurs, a civil war is not over until the entire population that was involved has passed on (reference our own civil war). Reconciliation is much harder than continued hostilities, and although no longer a “shooting” war, it will take at least a generation for the Guatemalan populace to come to grips with the thirty-five plus years of inhumane abuse. Enlightenment is needed from all people in such a state.
“One can never forget, but must learn to forgive” was a phrase spoken to me late one night in June 1990 in Managua, Nicaragua by a returning Contra commander, who was about to meet his younger brother for the first time in seven years (the brother being a Major in the Sandinista army). Both had fought against each other, sometimes in the same area, and both had survived and even advanced their respective military careers during the conflict. The man who I spent the majority of the evening talking (and drinking copious amounts of the local rum -Flor de Cana) with, was clearly more nervous and scared at his approaching fraternal reconciliation than he had been going into battle. I have thought of him often in the intervening years and hope that he and his brother were able to find peace.
It pleases me that Haverford is offering such an opportunity to its students as a Guatemalan history / poli-sci. class today. Makes me proud to be a ‘Ford.

Comment on An Emotional Coaster Ride by Carson Barnes '78

Carson Barnes '78 — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 16:41:47 +0000

You know, I was in Guatemala for Army Day in 1991; at the time, virtually every soldier (not officers) was indigenous. Kids 15, 16 years old, marching down the street in thousands, holding automatic weapons. The bus I took to Santa Elena (12 hours) was stopped at 3 AM by a group of indigenous soldiers who looked at my passport with some curiosity, and obviously let me go on.

There was a policy at the time of impressing youth into the army in order to remove them from their villages, to put them to war against villages of other peoples – we lump them as indigenous people, they recognize the difference between e.g. Quiche and Cakchiquel as being equivalent to the difference between Italians and French. The point being, (a) tear them from the culture they know (as US did with natives by putting them in “Indian schools” and punishing them for speaking native languages) and (b) use them against local “foreigners”.

Just a few footnotes, there.