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Special Report |
LAST UPDATE July 12, 2005
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| September 21, 2004 |
Central American Women's Forum – Brainstorming Formulas for Success |
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| Central American Women's Forum |
Between port in Colombia and Guatemala, Peace Boat hosted an eight-women-forum on Central American women’s issues. The gathering included women from Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala and Colombia. With a pair of women from each country, they carried out long discussion and brainstorming sessions over five intense days at sea. Represented were diplomats, educators, rights’ activists and former guerrillas who used their varied life experiences to reflect on the challenges Central American women face – as well as sharing creative solutions. As the ship sailed to Guatemala, the pair of women from that country made a presentation to a Peace Boat audience of 350 participants, about the current situation and some of the unique problems women face there. |
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| Women activists Lin Valenzuela and Delia Castillo |
Delia Castillo works with Asociacion Mujeres Vamos Adelante (AMVA) or "Women Let's Go! Association,” to strengthen women’s participation in communities across 14 Guatemalan provinces. "We're working to develop the role of indigenous people and Guatemalan women," Castillo said. Wearing hair braids that distinguish her as a married woman, Castillo pointed out that women rights can be balanced with tradition.
Lin Valenzuela is a women’s rights’ activist and former guerilla member trying to bring justice to indigenous farmers during the civil war. Valenzuela, who wore a shirt with an ancient Mayan calendar design, said that the majority of the population lives in subsistence farming or in the informal economy to survive – especially in rural areas. "In Guatemala, 46 percent of the people live in extreme poverty because wealth is concentrated in too few hands," Valenzuela said. |
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| The volcanic rural highlands of Guatemala |
This poverty is compounded for girls, who are often not registered at birth. When these girls become women they have no official documents to help establish their rights. "It means that at the end of the day they don't have an identity – they don't exist." Castillo said. The traditional belief that a man is worth more is continued through many forms of discrimination. "When there is a boy born the doctor charges three times the price of when a girl is born, because a girl doesn't have any value." Castillo explained. One of the results of this is the highest rate of infant deaths in the world. Despite the prevailing belief to the contrary, most women wake up at 5am and don't collapse into bed until 10pm everyday – even on weekends. "Surveys have shown that men work 12 hours a day and women work 18 hours a day," she said. The never-ending work of raising children, house and field work means few women can find the time to participate in meetings that would change traditions that discriminate against them. |
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| Women from Nicaragua and Colombia display a banner in Guatemala |
Because of pressure to marry or working to help their family, girls often have little education, especially since rural inhabitants largely speak in one of the four main indigenous languages. Since business is conducted mostly in Spanish, this puts indigenous people at a severe disadvantage. Castillo explained that since close to 67 percent of all women can't read, less than one percent of university students in Guatemala are women. This lack of education is also reflected in positions of power – out of Guatemala's 331 towns, only two towns have female mayors. "In Guatemala it is very rare to see women in positions of power" Castillo said. One ray of hope is the right for women to own and farm land. "It was recognized by law, after the peace agreement, that women are also farmers. So now they have access to land rights," Castillo said. |
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| Young girl from the rural Guatemalan village San Martin Jilotepeque |
Some Guatemalans are traditionalists and see women's groups as threatening, subjecting women activists to abuse and even violence. "We are often threatened and oppressed because of our participation in those activities," she said. The formidable contribution women make to Guatemala's society, however, can't be ignored. "In the economy women have a very important role, as 24 percent of all families are headed by a woman, because either the man has left or is dead," Castillo said. Constant efforts by civil society groups such as AMVA are beginning to pay off. "When we started working in that area, hardly any women were getting involved in political or social activities," she said. For every step these groups take, more women are contributing to overturning Guatemala's deeply rooted prejudice against women. |
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Resources
Fundacion Guillermo Toriello (Spanish) – www.c.net.gt/fgtoriello
Peace Women Guatemala – www.peacewomen.org/resources/Guatemala/guatemalaindex.html
Human Rights Watch on Women Workers in Guatemala – www.hrw.org/doc?t=women_labor&c=guatem
Amnesty International – Guatemala – www.web.amnesty.org/report2004/gtm-summary-eng
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