Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
idea to wear it around while in Guatemala, as indigenous peoples will find this highly of-
fensive (or downright hilarious, at best). Many people buy
huipiles
to frame and hang as
home decor, laying the blouse flat with the large head opening at its center or hanging it
fromawoodenrod.Youcanseeexamples wherethishasbeentastefully doneinnumerous
Antigua boutique hotels.
Jade jewelry mined from local quarries is a popular item in upscale shops in Antigua.
“Primitivist” paintings are popular in the villages of San Pedro and Santiago, on the shores
of Lake Atitlán. For wool blankets, check out Momostenango, though you can also find
them inmarkets throughoutthecountry.Thebestwoodcarvings arefoundinthevillage of
El Remate, in the northern Petén department, though traditional wooden ceremonial masks
are still an item found exclusively in the Western Highlands.
Among the most horrific aspects of Guatemala's civil war was the kidnapping,
torture, and murder of at least 50,000 citizens by an army bent on brutal counter-
insurgency and the elimination of any and all political opposition, whether real
or imagined. Parallel to the oppression at the hands of the military, death squads
such as “White Hand” and “Eye for Eye” began operating independently of gov-
ernment forces but with their full knowledge and acquiescence. The kidnappings
targetedpeoplefromallwalksoflifebutespeciallyjournalists,unionleaders,in-
tellectuals, opposition party leaders, university students, laborers, teachers, and
clergy.
In the 1970s the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), a
branch of the Organization of American States, began issuing a series of annual
human-rights reports on countries around the world. In 1985, it issued a scath-
ing report on the human-rights situation in Guatemala, just before the country's
returntodemocratic rule.Asthestoriesofthetorturedanddisappearedareprob-
ably best told by the victims themselves, the 1985 report is significant in that it
includes testimony from an actual kidnapping victim and torture survivor.
Following is an excerpt from a transcript of a testimony corresponding to
a kidnapping victim during the government of General Oscar Humberto Mejía
Víctores. The report states that the capture was denied by security forces, as was
always the case, and the victim classified as “missing.” Incredibly, the victim
managed to escape from the hands of his captors and took refuge in a Guatem-
alaCityembassy,whereheinternedhimselfbyhurdlingoveragatebeforebeing
severely wounded by machine-gun fire.
CASE 9303 ALVARO RENÉ SOSA RAMOS
