Inching towards Freedom

Guatemala, the largest Central American country, is home to Tikal National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  The “Place of Whispers” has ancient ruins from the Mayan times, dated from 600 BC to 1000 AD. 

While Guatemala was a short 4-5 hour stop on our way to Costa Rica from Belize, we still got a chance to learn a lot about the country’s history and current issues.   Our local, highly educated and opinionated tour guide gave us a flavor of the country's politics. When asked about woman’s rights, his answer was bluntly, “what rights?” When we asked him about gay rights, he simply grunted implying, “are you out of your mind?” He continued by saying that people ostracize gays and they don't dare come out.  We asked if the elections were fair in Guatemala and he responded by saying, “no, of course” as if it was a given. He believes that his country is corrupt and if he had a chance to lead the country, the first thing he would do is shoot the politicians. “Politicians know how to create a problem out of a solution, they get paid to do it," he went on.  He said that the elders in the small towns know what the most pressing problems are and how they can be solved. He believes the people have the answers; it is just that no one asks them. He continued, “the kids here pick up a machete before they pick up a pencil,” backing up the statistic that 30% of men and 50% of women are illiterate. According to him the illiteracy is not an issue of too few schools or poor teachers, but a political tactic to keep the population ignorant and easier to rule. People just don’t have the means or the motivation to go to school and the government is not making it easier or encouraging it. 

Guatemala has serious gang and crime issues related to the insatiable demand for drugs from the United States.  Our guide said we should legalize drugs because we are losing the "war on drugs."  He said he thought he'd be the last person to support remnants of the old regime that in the Guatemalan Civil War destroyed 450 Mayan villages, killed 200,000 people and displaced another million, however, he said we now need a strong hand to handle the drug criminals.  There is some optimism in Guatemala now because at least now people can talk about politics and in the old days they could not.

It was interesting to learn about the special relationship between Israel and Guatemala. Given Guatemala's claim to Belize which was a British colony, Guatemala supported Israel's creation as an affront to British rule in Palestine.  Guatemala tried to get votes for Israel's creation and its vote ensured the final approval of the state. Israel in turn has provided arms to Guatemala in addition to educational and healthcare support.  The numerous Star of David signs show the Guatemalan appreciation.