Guatemala Today

Guatemalans are struggling. Over half the population lives below the poverty line and gang membership is rising as an overwhelmed and under-resourced police force struggles to maintain order. Against this increasingly bleak backdrop, scores of grass-roots organizations have sprung up, tirelessly combating Guatemala’s many problems. While successive governments continue to make promises, it is Guatemalans themselves who are delivering solutions.

Neither Corrupt nor a Thief

The elections that followed ex-president Otto Pérez Molina's impeachment were won by Jimmy Morales, a popular television comic whose popularity partly stemmed from the fact that he came from outside the country's political elite. Morales ran with the slogan 'Ni corrupto, ni ladrón' (neither corrupt nor a thief), which obviously touched some chords in a country that now had its previous president and vice-president in jail. Morales took office in January 2016. Hopes were high that change was finally in the air, but the new president's ties to the military establishment (themselves seen as the core of the country's real political elite) gave way to concerns that the country was in for more of the same, again.

A Question of Security

Guatemala still struggles with violence. The National Gun Registry campaign started off well, but continues to falter. There are 11 guns for every 100 people in Guatemala, of which only three are registered.

The police force, understaffed and under-resourced, has struggled to keep up with the rise in drug-related crime, particularly in urban areas and most notably in Guatemala City. A measure of their failure to do so is the fact that there are an estimated 150,000 private security guards employed nationwide, as compared to just 30,000 police officers. It won’t take you too long on your travels before you start spotting heavily armed young (sometimes scarily young) men in official-looking uniforms, guarding everything from private residences to pharmacies and fast-food restaurants.

Global Policy

Global policy continues to affect Guatemala. A possibly unforeseen consequence of the move toward renewable fuels worldwide has seen corn-tortilla prices skyrocket in Guatemala, as the United States uses up to 40% of its corn crop to make biofuel. Corn is a staple in Guatemala – pretty much the one ingredient you are guaranteed to see at every meal – and despite widespread plantations the country pays over US$200 million per year to import corn.

One very touchy subject in rural Guatemala has to do with large (often foreign-administered) projects such as hydroelectric dams and mineral mines. Amnesty International reports state that international companies regularly flaunt Human Rights conventions when displacing local communities, and that the worst-affected are impoverished rural indigenous communities.

The Slow Road to Recovery

Guatemala is on the slow road to recovery from its Civil War wounds. While this is in part due to the passing of generations who lived through the war, official recognition of some atrocities has been an important step in the recovery process. Though President Morales has stated he does not believe the genocide in the Ixil triangle ever took place, a campaign is underway to exhume clandestine cemeteries used by the military to bury 'disappeared' dissidents and the legal processes have at last begun, with some war criminals being brought to justice. So far the heftiest penalty to be handed down was to ex-Military Commissioner Lucas Tecún, who was sentenced to 7710 years in prison.

In March 2012, in a move that shocked many hardened cynics, a Guatemalan judge removed the final obstacle barring former dictator Efraín Ríos Montt from facing trial on charges of genocide. At first he was convicted to 80 years prison, but a later court ruling overturned the conviction, then called for a retrial, citing Ríos Montt's alleged senility.

Grass Roots Movement

In the face of official indifference and/or inability to deal with the country’s myriad problems, many community-based organizations and NGOs are moving in to fill the void. Large segments of the Guatemalan population are becoming active in volunteer work, focusing on everything from neighborhood-watch-type programs in areas unpatrolled by police to larger efforts focusing on food security and housing for the poor. This community spirit is also evident after natural disasters hit the country, as citizens band together to deliver aid to affected families.

The mass protests against the Pérez Molina government, mainly non-politically aligned and organized chiefly through social media, seem to have sparked a new interest in politics among young Guatemalans, with alliances being formed from previously disparate groups.

Best on Film

Aquí me Quedo (Rodolfo Espinoza; 2010) Subtle political commentary, black comedy and satire abound in this story of a kidnapping, shot in and around Quetzaltenango.

When the Mountains Tremble (Pamela Yates & Newton Thomas Sigel; 1983) Documentary featuring Susan Sarandon and Rigoberta Menchú, telling the story of the civil war.

Capsulas (Verónica Riedel; 2011) A look at greed, corruption and the drug trade from one of Guatemala’s few female directors.

Ixcanúl (Jayro Bustamante; 2015) Multi-award winning film (and Guatemala's first entry at the Academy Awards) about a young Kaqchikel girl's coming of age.

Best in Print

The President (Miguel Ángel Asturias; 1946) Nobel Prize–winning Guatemalan author takes some not-too-subtle jabs at the country’s long line of dictators.

A Mayan Life (Gaspar Pedro Gonzáles; 1995) The first published novel by a Maya author is an excellent study of rural Guatemalan life.

The Art of Political Murder (Francisco Goldman; 2008) Meticulously researched account of the assassination of Bishop Gerardi.

Population

14,919,000

Area

108,889 sq km

GDP

US$63.22 billion

Inflation

2.2%

Population below Poverty Line

54%