Guatemala
Guatemala was freed of Spanish colonial rule in 1821. During the second half of the 20th century, it experienced a variety of military and civilian governments as well as a 36-year guerrilla war. The conflict pitted leftist, mostly Mayan insurgents against the army, which - backed by the United States - waged a vicious campaign to eliminate the guerrillas. In 1996, the government signed a peace agreement formally ending the conflict, which had led to the death or disappearance of an estimated 200,000 people and had created some 1 million refugees.
Alfonso Portillo of the Frente Republicano Guatemalteco (FRG) was inaugurated as President in 2000. Despite a somewhat colorful past (he confessed to killing two men "in self-defense" and was a former fugitive from justice in Mexico) he appointed a broadly-based cabinet comprising former guerrilla sympathizers, and promised to dismantle an elite security unit which was accused of committing atrocities in the civil war. He proposed a budget that would use some tax increases, in addition to other measures, to reduce the fiscal deficit. The budget that was eventually approved uses further spending cuts and earnings from privatizations to reduce the country's fiscal deficit.
The wealthy farmer Oscar Berger won the 2003 presidential election. He had the backing of Guatemala's traditional power-brokers - the agricultural and banking elite. A former mayor of Guatemala City, he ran for the presidency in 1999 but was roundly defeated then by Alfonso Portillo. Berger declared his priorities were to fight crime, corruption and poverty, and to implement the 1996 peace accord.
The fate of Guatemala's former military ruler, General Efrain Rios Montt, is another thorny issue facing his administration. He faces genocide charges for overseeing a scorched-earth campaign designed to weed out those suspected of aiding rebel forces. Montt lost his immunity from prosecution when he gave up his seat as a member of Congress in 2004, and was placed under house arrest. During his election campaign Berger refused to commit himself on whether he thought the former dictator should stand trial.
In mid-October 1999, Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Chile signed a framework agreement to liberalize trade between their countries. Guatemala has signed the Mexico-Northern Triangle free-trade agreement with Mexico, El Salvador, and Honduras, which went into effect March 15, 2001. Guatemala also received NAFTA parity for clothing exports in October 2000 as part of the Caribbean Basin Initiative. A territorial dispute with Belize continues.
While there are no known specific threats to travelers to or expatriate residents in Guatemala, violent criminal activity has been a problem in Guatemala for years, including numerous murders, rapes, kidnappings and armed assaults against foreigners. Guatemala has one of the highest crime rates in Central America (see “Crime” below).
In addition to economic concerns, Guatemala faces significant political and social uncertainty, stemming in large part from the civil war. Crime has become a major issue, with soaring gun sales and the army called into the street to supplement police protection, and the country continues to face serious problems in the areas of health, education, and security, among others.
Vigilantism is a growing problem in some rural towns and villages where suspected criminals have been beaten and burned, in some cases after be wrested from police custody. The problem underscores frustration with the authorities' inability to bring crime under control.
In a similar vein periodic unfounded rumors that foreigners are involved in the theft of children for organ transplants have led to threats and incidents of mob violence in various parts of the country. Foreign tourists have been attacked and killed by mobs amid such rumors, including an attack on a Japanese tourist bus in the village of Todos Santos in 2000 that left one tourist dead. Travelers should be aware that in areas outside of the major tourist and business destinations there exists greater likelihood, albeit small, or such an incident. Travelers also increase their risk if they have contact with Guatemalan children. Adoptive parents, in particular, would be well advised to travel within Guatemala without their adoptive children, or to limit such travel to the extent possible.
