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http://edition.cnn.com/2015/04/02/world/iyw-guatemala-gender-violence/
Guatemala – Nearly 20 Years After the Peace Pact, Guatemala’s Women Relive Violence
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Adelma Cifuentes, fearing for
her life, suffered through an abusive relationship for more than a decade.
By Julie Guinan as part of CARE Learning Tour, CNN – April 8,
2015
(CNN)For
12 years Adelma Cifuentes felt worthless, frightened and alone, never knowing
when her abusive husband would strike.
But
as a young mother in rural Guatemala with three children and barely a third
grade education, she thought there was no way out.
What
began as psychological torment, name-calling and humiliation turned into
beatings so severe Cifuentes feared for her life. One day, two men sent by her
husband showed up at her house armed with a shotgun and orders to kill her.
They probably would have succeeded, but after the first bullet was fired,
Cifuentes' two sons dragged her inside. Still, in her deeply conservative
community, it took neighbors two hours to call for help and Cifuentes lost her
arm.
But
the abuse didn't stop there. When she returned home, Cifuentes' husband
continued his attacks and threatened to rape their little girl unless she left.
That's when the nightmare finally ended and her search for justice began.
Guatamala's past still
haunts
Cifuentes'
case is dramatic, but in Guatemala, where nearly 10 out of every 100,000 women
are killed, it's hardly unusual.
A
2012 Small Arms Survey says gender-based violence is at epidemic levels in
Guatemala and the country ranks third in the killings of women worldwide.
According to the United Nations, two women are killed there every day.
There
are many reasons why, beginning with the legacy of violence left in place after
the country's 36-year-old civil war. During the conflict, atrocities were
committed against women, who were used as a weapon of war. In 1996, a ceasefire
agreement was reached between insurgents and the government. But what followed
and what remains is a climate of terror, due to a deeply entrenched culture of
impunity and discrimination. Military and paramilitary groups that committed
barbaric acts during the war were integrated back into society without any
repercussions. Many remain in power, and they have not changed the way they
view women.
Some
200,000 people were either killed or disappeared during the decades-long
conflict, most of them from indigenous Mayan populations. Nearly 20 years
later, according to the Security Sector Reform Resource Centre, levels of
violent crime are higher in Guatemala than they were during the war. But
despite the high homicide rate, the United Nations estimates 98% of cases never
make it to court. Women are particularly vulnerable because of a deep-rooted
gender bias and culture of misogyny. In many cases, femicide -- the killing of
a woman simply because of her gender -- is carried out with shocking brutality
with some of the same strategies used during the war, including rape, torture
and mutilation.
Explosion in violence
Mexican
drug cartels, organized criminal groups and local gangs are contributing to the
vicious cycle of violence and lawlessness. Authorities investigating
drug-related killings are stretched thin, leaving fewer resources to
investigate femicides. In many cases, crime is not reported because of fear of
retaliation. Many consider the Guatamalen National Civil Police, or PNC,
corrupt, under-resourced and ineffective. Even if a case does get prosecuted, according
to Human Rights Watch, the country's weak judicial system has proved incapable
of handling the explosion in violence.
Prevailing culture of
machismo
Perhaps
one of the biggest challenges facing women in Guatemala is the country's deeply
rooted patriarchal society.
According
to María Machicado Terán, the representative of U.N. women in Guatemala,
"80% of men believe that women need permission to leave the house, and 70%
of women surveyed agreed." This prevailing culture of machismo and an
institutionalized acceptance of brutality against women leads to high rates of
violence. Rights groups say machismo not only condones violence, it places the
blame on the victim.
The
political will to address violence against women is slow to materialize.
"Politicians
don't think women are important," says former Secretary General of the
Presidential Secretariat for Women Elizabeth Quiroa. "Political parties
use women for elections. They give them a bag of food and people sell their
dignity for this because they are poor."
Lack
of education is a major contributor to this poverty. Many girls, especially in
indigenous communities don't go to school because the distance from their house
to the classroom is too far.
Quiroa
says "They are subject to rape, violence and forced participation in the
drug trade."
Signs of progress
Although
the situation for girls and women in Guatemala is alarming, there are signs the
culture of discrimination may be slowly changing. With the help of an
organization known as CICAM, or Centro de Investigación, Cifuentes was finally
able to escape her husband and get the justice she deserved. He is now spending
27 years behind bars.
Cifuentes
is using her painful past to provide hope and healing to others through art.
Since
2008, she and four other abuse survivors known as La Poderosas, or "The
Powerful," have been appearing in a play based on their real life stories.
Five Guatemalan abuse
survivors known as La Poderosas or
"The Powerful"
share their stories and help other women get support.
The
show not only empowers other women and discusses the problem of violence
openly, but it also offers suggestions for change. And it's having an impact.
Women have started breaking their silence and asking where they can get
support. Men are reacting, too. One of the main characters, Lesbia Téllez, says
during one presentation, a man stood up and started crying when he realized how
he had treated his wife and how his mother had been treated. He said he wanted
to be different.
The
taboo topic of gender-based violence is also being acknowledged and recognized
in a popular program targeting one of Guatemala's most vulnerable groups,
indigenous Mayan girls. In 2004, with help from the United Nations and other
organizations, the Population Council launched a community-based club known as
Abriendo Oportunidades, or "Opening Opportunities". The goal is to
provide girls with a safe place to learn about their rights and reach their
full potential.
Senior
Program Coordinator Alejandra Colom says the issue of violence is discussed and
girls are taught how to protect themselves. "They then share this
information with their mothers and for the first time, they realize they are
entitled to certain rights."
Colom
adds that mothers then become invested in sending their daughters to the clubs
and this keeps them more visible and less prone to violence.
The
Guatemalan government is also moving in the right direction to address the
problem of violence against women. In 2008, the Congress passed a law against
femicide. Two years later the attorney general's office created a specialized
court to try femicides and other violent crimes against women. In 2012, the
government established a joint task force for crimes against women, making it
easier for women to access justice by making sure victims receive the
assistance they need. The government has also established a special 24-hour
court to attend to femicide cases. On the global front, the International
Violence Against Women Act was introduced in the U.S. Congress in 2007; it has been
pending ever since. But last week the act was reintroduced in both the House
and Senate. If approved, it would make reducing levels of gender-based violence
a U.S. foreign policy priority.
Pehaps
the most immediate and effective help is coming from International
nongovernmental organizations, which are on the front lines of the fight
against gender-based discrimination in Guatemala.
Ben
Weingrod, a senior policy advocate at the global poverty fighting group CARE,
says, "We work to identify and challenge harmful social norms that
perpetuate violence. Our work includes engaging men and boys as champions of
change and role models, and facilitating debates to change harmful norms and
create space for more equitable relationships between men and women."
But the
job is far from over. While there is tempered optimism and hope for change, the
problem of gender-based violence in Guatemala is one that needs international
attention and immediate action.
Cifuentes is finding strength through the theater and the support of other abuse survivors, which has allowed her to move forward. But millions of other women trapped in a cycle of violence are facing dangerous and frightening futures. For them, it's a race against time and help cannot come soon enough.