Part Of Guatemala's Indigenous Population example essay topic

The Political Community The "social apartheid" that exist in Guatemala separates Guatemala into two places and does not allow the country to be united, both democratically socially. The indigenous population is separated from opportunities. Without the minimal conditions, necessary for citizens to exercise their rights in practice there is not citizenship and therefore no "true" democracy. New democratic institutions must both address the anxiety existing among Ladinos and prove to be responsive to a sizeable segment of the national community that has previously been excluded based on language and ethnicity. Authoritarian regimes which retain considerable power and the democratic transition is never fully consolidated, stable, or lasting. Dealing not only with the elimination of military control, but also addressing the country's historical problems, including massive social inequalities.

More than half of Guatemalans are descendants of indigenous Mayan peoples. Westernized Mayans and mestizos (mixed European and indigenous ancestry) are known as Ladinos. Most of Guatemala's population is rural, though urbanization is accelerating. Although the official language is Spanish, it is not universally understood among the indigenous population.

According to the World Bank, Guatemala is the country with the second-greatest income disparity between rich and poor in Latin America, behind Brazil. On which sides of that divide Guatemalans sit depends largely on whether they are Indian. United Nations statistics show 70 percent of all Guatemalans who live in extreme poverty are indigenous. The administration made some progress on such issues as taking state responsibility for past human rights cases, supporting human rights in international forums, and pressing labor rights reforms, but it failed to show significant advances on combating impunity in past human rights cases, military reforms, and legislation to increase political participation. The political balance was once again disrupted in 2000 when allegations surfaced that the FRG had illegally altered legislation. Following an investigation, the Supreme Court stripped those involved -- including President of Congress and FRG chief Rios Montt -- of their legislative immunity to face charges in the case.

At roughly the same time, the PAN opposition suffered an internal split and broke into factions; the same occurred in the ANN. Reforms essential to peace implementation still await legislative action. The Accord on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples (the Indigenous Accord) was signed in 1995 as part of the peace accords. It contains commitments to constitutional reforms to promote and respect certain indigenous peoples' rights, mainly related to issues of cultural rights and identity, participatory mechanisms, the role of indigenous authorities and customary law. Even with this accord, conditions for indigenous women in particular continue to degenerate. Indigenous women continue to be discriminated against and exploited stated by a Report on the Situation of Indigenous Women by the Defensoria.

The Defensoria was established in 1999 as part of the requirements of the section of the 1996 Peace Accords on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples. But since its creation, despite some advances, 'public policies have not taken into account the real needs and feelings of indigenous women and decision-making bodies have not been sensitive to the issue. ' As of 3 November, Amnesty International had received reports of at least 21 election-related killings, 46 threats directed at journalists covering the elections and over 100 other election-related incidents of threats and intimidation, including against human rights defenders and participants in election observation initiatives (Amnesty International Press Release 6 November 2003). The UN Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) expresses its overall evaluation of the implementation of the Indigenous Accord in its 2001 report:' The Mission has stressed at various times that the commitments regarding the indigenous people are among those showing the greatest non-compliance. ' 26 The political exclusion of indigenous peoples in Guatemala continues, with only 16 indigenous deputies out of 113. Beginning in 1960, civil war ravaged Guatemala for 36 years, ending finally in 1996 after taking a devastating toll.

There were approximately 200,000 Guatemalans dead, 1,000,000 homeless and over 45,000 who had 'disappeared,' The people who 'disappeared". Most of the people who were tortured and killed by government forces were part of Guatemala's indigenous population. Under the current leadership of Alfonso Portillo, the government has been involved in a series of high-level corruption scandals, and the United States determined in April 2003 that Guatemala had failed to demonstrably adhere to its international counter narcotics commitments during the previous year. National elections will be held on November 9, 2003, followed by a run-off election on December 28 in the event no presidential candidate gets more than half the votes cast. The new government will assume office on January 14, 2004.