The plight of Guatemala

This is an email I received the other day from Casa Alianza's distribution list. Casa Alianza is an organization located in Central America and is a branch of Covenant House New York. It works to protect the rights of children.


CONTINUED HARASSMENT AND AGGRESSION ON THE PART OF GUATEMALAN SOLDIERS AGAINST STREET CHILDREN AND EDUCATORS OF CASA ALIANZA

For the second time security forces assault an Educator from Casa Alianza

On Wednesday the 14th of June a group of street educators were conducting their daily activities with the street children. When they arrived they were surprised to find that a group of soldiers, who make up the “City Security Squadron”, had a group of street children standing up against the wall. They were searching them and, at the same time, giving them blows to the chest. The military were traveling on the motorcycles of the National Civil Police, as part of the combined operatives of the two governmental institutions.

An educator from Casa Alianza went to their defense and in response the soldiers assaulted him too. They put him against the wall, searched him and took his name down in a notebook. The educator explained to them that he worked for Casa Alianza and showed him the respective identification. The soldiers responded with crude language, giving them to understand that this did not matter to them. One of the soldiers said to them, “stop interfering in things, we could find ourselves meeting when we are not in uniform”, which was taken to be a clear threat.

Casa Alianza, along with various other organizations that work for human rights, are becoming greatly concerned recently, due to the fact that they hear daily of harassment of street children and street youth by the military forces. Such preoccupations were made greater when it was officially announced that the army and the police will strengthen their work together, and that the soldiers, as much as the police, will be equipped with support materials such as electric immobilizers and pepper spray. With the situation as it has been in the last month, this greatly concerns Casa Alianza, due to the possibility that it could increase abuses committed against children and adolescents.

On the other hand, the Prosecutor of Violent Crimes reported that up to May 86 bodies had been found with evidence of torture, of which, 60% of the victims were registered as having criminal records, and that the statistics indicate an increase in violent deaths.


STUFF LIKE THIS IS HAPPENING ALL OVER THE WORLD, AND WE NEED TO BE MORE EDUCATED ABOUT IT!