SPRING EQUINOX 1996 - Issue Number 35
This particular delegation is sponsored by our United Church of Christ group in Illinois which has been working on Guatemalan refugee stuff for about 8 - 10 years. There were 8 people in the delegation, plus the two leaders. The main focus of this trip was to learn about a group called Guatemalan Christian Action (ACG), which is kind of a liberation theology-type group--very grassroots (it began among the refugees) and also to learn about the situation here in Guatemala. We spent the first few days in Guatemala City, meeting with the local people who explained the current social/political situation and helped us to understand the basic principles of liberation theology. We also listened to a lecture on the Mayan religion. Finally we were ready to begin our journey. We boarded a big public bus for the 200km. drive to Coban, which was a beautiful four hour drive through everything from pine forests to dry, dusty, cactus-strewn hills. It's never dull driving here, there's always so much to see. The weird thing about this trip was they were showing a video on the bus-- Ace Ventura, Pet Detective -- it was so awful and embarrassing to be a gringo with that up on the screen. Too strange.
Martha Van Vleck Pierce is the directory of the Chicago Metropolitian Sanctuary Alliance, a faith based organization working on issues of justice and peace in Central America. Following is an exerpt from a letter to her sister Sally Van Vleck.
So, we spent the night in a small hotel in Coban (cost: 25Q per person; 6Q=$1.00), and then set off the next morning with everyone standing in the back of the pickup truck (except I got to sit in the front cab with our trusty driver, Marvin). We spent the next 11 hours bouncing over the worst roads you can ever imagine--again through incredible scenery of mountains, winding roads, streams, little villages with houses made of sticks and with thatched roofs. It was very rough for those in back--they were all black and blue, with blisters on their hands from trying to hold on. It was hot and sunny and dusty and exhausting--even for me in the cab. We finally reached the worst part of the road just as it was getting dark. (Keep in mind this isn't just a road, it's the road--the only road--to the northern region! It's not paved, only rocks and dirt.) Here we came upon the mud. There were three large trucks going North, and three going South, all stuck up to the tops of their wheels in deep ruts of thick mud. Men were standing up to their waists, or lying, in the mud, trying to dig out the trucks--they'd been working on it all day, because as soon as a truck got through one bad spot it would go about 25 yards and get stuck again. It's just impossible to describe. We had to get out of our truck at this point, but gracias a Dios, our wonderful driver did manage to get his little Toyota through slipping and grinding and sliding and we only had to walk about 1/2 mile. By then it was dark, and we still had several kilometers to go, roads just as treacherous, where we thought we would get stuck and have to get out every once in a while, but we made it all the way into the community of Aurora (which means "Dawn" but it's mostly called Xanian, which is the old name.)
We were to sleep in the little church they have built, which has board walls, a corrugated tin roof and a dirt floor. By flashlight we figured out how to move the wooden planks they use for pews around to make into beds for ourselves, and finally spread out sleeping bags to go to sleep. As we were sitting up we were welcomed and greeted by our local hosts, who are so sweet and gracious, and brought bread and coffee. We spend the next three days in Xaman, meeting the people, hearing their stories and learning about the community. We had meetings with various groups--the women's organization, community directors, information commission, etc.
This group of people mostly returned to Guatemala on the first big Return of Refugees in January, 1993. They had fled their homes about 12 years before that, because of all the military violence directed against them. Many shared their stories of soldiers coming in the night to take away family members, to force all the women and children to gather in the church and the men in the school, then just opening fire through the doors and windows of the buildings and finally setting fire to them. (Over 440 villages in Guatemala were completely erased in this way in the early 1980s.) But now they have organized themselves and formed a co-op and returned to reclaim their rights as Guatamalen citizens and to build a new community. It's a very big task they've taken on; to clear the jungle and build the houses and other buildings and create all the organizing structures of a community and make it productive so they can support themselves, all this in face of a government which is not exactly on their side, and in some cases openly hostile to their project.
The military, which is still the strongest force in Guatemala, considers all returnees guerrilla sympathizers and there is some truth in this. This community of Aurora came to this particular piece of land on October 8, 1994. On October 5, 1995, as they were meeting to plan the celebration of their one year anniversary, a patrol of 25 soliders entered the community (this is about a 3 km walk from the entrance to where the people live), in full camouflage, battle gear, with faces blackened and fully armed (including a grenade launcher).
When the people came together to confront them and tried to tell them to leave, the soldiers opened fire. Eleven people were killed, including three children and more than thirty wounded. We saw the markers on the open field, rough home-made crosses placed by each family to mark the place where their loved one was killed. One man talked about losing his wife. He said they had discussed for a long time the risks involved in returning from Mexico and she had finally concluded, "We have to go. We have to be a part of changing things for our people. Even if it means it might cost us our lives." He said that losing her was like losing a part of his own body, his arm. He said, "God created us to live in pairs."
One family of six kids was left orphaned, because their father had died in Mexico and their mother was killed in the massacre. The community has built a new house for the children and the oldest daughter is doing the best she can to take care of the younger ones. She is 16. In spite of all the things they have suffered, or perhaps because of them, the people are very strong, and they remain very unified and committed to their vision of creating a better life for their children.
We celebrated Sunday worship with them. Their deep spirituality is really moving, and they all even prayed for me to get better (I had a little flu bug). We also spent about two hours in a Bible-reflection session with them, which was wonderful. On the next day, we invited all the women to come meet and do reflection with us. We didn't know how it would work out, we expected maybe 8 or 10 would come, but it turned out to be about 200, including all the babies and little children! It took forever for each woman to introduce herself, they are so very shy!, saying her name, ethnic group (there are five languages spoken in the community, many of the women don't speak Spanish) and where she was born (many don't know). As you can imagine, this was quite a chaotic scene, with babies crying, and being nursed, all around, toddlers playing and running about and many of the women dressed in their colorful indigenous costumes. It was wonderful!
When we divided into smaller groups (by language), for Bible study, our group went outside because it was so noisy in the Church. We had to get one young girl to translate from Kekchi. A big highlight occurred when a helicopter landed nearby, bringing a team from the UN Human Rights Observer Mission on a regularly scheduled visit. (They are very involved in the ongoing investigation and prosecution of the massacre.) We met with them after our meeting with the women ended.
While we were there we also spent some time just wandering around, visiting with people. This is the friendliest place I've ever been and they were very glad we were there. We ate dinner with the families, and washed ourselves and our clothes in the little stream which is their only source of water. (In the dry season even this is gone and they have to walk 4 km to another river to get water.)
At night we went to bed early, listening to the howler monkeys in the jungle and marveling at the amazing stars in the sky. It's very hard to live like that and we were all exhausted and ready to leave after four nights, but at the same time it's a wonderful experience. The people are so sweet and generous and courageous. One man who was part of our group said, "These people really re-start your human heart, don't they?"
Our big preoccupation while we were in Xaman was whether our trusty driver would be able to make it back to pick us up. We walked about two hours down the road until he came, then took the long trip through the mud and over the mountains back to Coban. We were very glad to get back to hot showers, real beds and electricity. But we also left part of our hearts in Xaman, and will now be working to support them in their struggle. It is really such a privilege to have these strong and gentle people open their lives to us, we felt quite humbled and grateful for their many gifts to us.
When we got back to Guatemala City we had a couple of more meetings and also some reflection sessions to share our questions and responses. These experiences are very complex and demanding, and it takes a long time to process it all. I was on the worship committee and had to help focus our prayer and spiritual reflection. We did a lot of singing, a lot of laughing and crying and sharing together. On the last night, some Mayan priests came and did a ceremony with us, praying for all of our upcoming journeys and also for the future of the Mayan people. This was really special, a perfect way to end the whole experience, kneeling on the ground, in prayer, surrounded by smoky incense and flowers.
Return to the Index of Synapse 35, Spring Equinox 1996