COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS EXAMINES SECOND PERIODIC REPORT OF GUATEMALA

14 November 2003



The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has considered the second periodic report of Guatemala on how that country was implementing the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Introducing the report, Alfonso Fuentes, Chairperson of the Presidential Commission for Human Rights of Guatemala, said the Government was working towards strengthening and generating an atmosphere of confidence between the State and civil society which had experienced the consequences of the armed conflict and an authoritarian State. The conflict situation had prompted the proliferation of private police and clandestine groups, whose total number exceeded that of the National Civil Police, he added.

Members of the Committee raised a series of questions pertaining to the implementation of the peace agreement; the high rate of illiteracy; the attention given to education; the rights of women and the measures taken to empower them; the situation of indigenous peoples; the extent of child labour; measures against trafficking in women and children; and the steps taken to improve the health services, among other things.

The Committee will release its concluding observations and recommendations on the report of Guatemala at the end of its three-week session on Friday, 28 November.

The delegation of Guatemala was also composed of Catalina Soberanis, from the Secretariat for Peace of the President of the Republic; Mynor Cordon, Vice Minister of Health and Social Affairs; Ricardo Alvarado, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Guatemala to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Angela Chavez, Minister-Counsellor; Stephanie Hochstetter, Counsellor; Leslie Corzo, of the Presidential Commission for Human Rights; and Lionel Figueredo and Blanca Rosa Gonzalez, of the Secretariat for Peace.

As one of the 148 States parties to the International Covenant, Guatemala is obligated to submit periodic reports to the Committee on its compliance with the provisions of the treaty.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Monday, 17 November, it will devote the morning to discuss in private draft conclusions on country reports already considered this session. At 3 p.m., it is scheduled to take up the fourth periodic report of the Russian Federation (E/C.12/4/Add.10).

Report of Guatemala

The second periodic report of Guatemala (E/1990/6/Add.34/Rev.1) explains the efforts of the State party to implement the provisions of the Covenant in the fields of health, education, labour and culture. It says that the Congress of Guatemala adopted various laws and reforms in the period from 1999 to 2001, especially in the fields of education, labour and social security, aimed at strengthening the legal framework so as to establish a legal climate offering certainty conducive to economic and social development programmes capable of giving effect to the rights recognized under the Covenant.

It notes that regulations were issued governing the advertising of cigarettes and alcoholic beverages, and it was stipulated that packs and bottles containing these substances must contain warnings concerning the health of the people who used them.

In the field of education, the report says that community centres for accelerated pre-school education are designed to ensure attendance in the first grade of primary school by developing skills, capabilities and positive habits among pre-schoolers. Their content and methodology are geared toward child development and ways of dealing with the needs, interests and problems of communities, and to incorporate elements of universal, western and Mayan culture.

The recognition that Guatemala is a multilingual and multicultural country has been integrated into the courses offered in schools, the reports says. In 2001, the Government gave special attention to education in displaced communities by hiring 815 educational outreach workers as primary school teachers. In 2001, 20 per cent of the schools in 18 minority language communities offered intercultural bilingual education from the pre-primary level to the third grade. Nine thousand teachers were taught to read and write the Mayan language.

Presentation of Report

ALFONSO FUENTES, Chairperson of the Presidential Commission for Human Rights, said that the Government was working towards strengthening and generating an atmosphere of confidence between the State and civil society which had experienced the consequences of the armed conflict and an authoritarian State. The conflict situation had promoted the proliferation of private police and clandestine groups, whose total number exceeded that of the National Civil Police.

Mr. Fuentes said that the Presidential Commission for Human Rights was composed of representatives of the Ministries of Defence and External Relations, among others. The Council of Directors of the Commission, which had not met since 1997, had studied and approved a proposal on policies pertaining to human rights. According to those policies, civil society should be consulted while formulating decisions on human rights and their implementation. The State President should approve the policies.

He said that the measures taken following the adoption of decisions recognized the responsibility of the State in cases of serious violations of human rights, which would be accompanied by research on the solutions in concert with the families of the victims. A national plan on compensation had been put in place and a working group composed of ten representatives of the government and civil society would determine its elaboration and policies.

In the name of the Government of Guatemala, Mr. Fuentes invited the members of the Committee to visit his country in order to evaluate the work done on the promotion of human rights, particularly concerning economic, social and cultural rights. He said that the Government had put in place a poverty eradication strategy paper, and for the first time, the problem of poverty had been debated in public. In the past people who raised the issue of poverty had been either killed or had left the country due the pressure put on them.

Mr. Fuentes, with the help of a video show, said that health services were not available to the entire population, with 10 per cent of the population still lacking access to health facilities. Municipalities were involved in providing health services to their communities. In addition, bilingual education had been enhanced; legal measures had been taken to eliminate child labour; and a commission had been created to monitor discrimination against the indigenous population.

Discussion

Following the presentation of the report by the delegation, Committee Experts raised a number of questions. An Expert said that he did not find any legal statement on the recognition of the indigenous peoples’ demands. The issue of indigenous peoples should be addressed within the framework of legal documents. Also, the question of autonomy for the indigenous peoples was not dealt with in the report. Accessibility to justice by the indigenous peoples, through interpretation for example, was not indicated in the report. He asked if the legislative provisions on facilitating education in indigenous mother tongues had been implemented. Little progress had been made towards agrarian reform, which would have allowed indigenous peoples to own land.

Another Expert asked about the manner in which the State party was strengthening affirmative actions to empower the indigenous people to realize their rights. The indigenous people were among the most vulnerable groups of the country, with no social security and social benefits.

An Expert said that Guatemala was among the countries that were rich in ethnic diversity. What real consequences did such diversity have on planning and implementing development projects? What measures had been taken to recognize the rights of the indigenous people? The conflict was one of the longest and bloodiest conflicts in Latin America. What legal framework existed for the peace agreement? Did it have a constitutional guarantee for its implementation? What greater efforts had been made to make justice accessible to all?

Following the violent events that took place in Guatemala, a peace agreement had been signed, another Expert said. However, its implementation had been slow and there was even a slipping back in the commitments. What real progress had been made in the implementation of the peace agreement? He requested more information on discrimination in the agrarian field involving the indigenous peoples.

An Expert asked if the Presidential Commission for Human Rights was set up in accordance with the Paris Principles on the establishment of national institutions for human rights. He asked if the Commission was independent and if it was carrying out investigations on human rights violations. He also asked if the Covenant was recognized at all levels of governmental structure. Sixty per cent of the population was composed of indigenous peoples. What was the impact of the various laws on discrimination?

Another Expert asked about the success obtained in the implementation of the agrarian reform.

Responding, the delegation said that the Government had attempted to give the issue of autonomy to the indigenous people a constitutional rank, but because of the confusion on the issue, this had not been realized yet.

With regard to the peace agreement, the delegation said that the timetable had to be met with full commitment. However, there was a lack of commitment to the peace agreement on the part of the politicians. The content of the agreement itself was not widely disseminated throughout the country.

On racism, the delegation said that indigenous peoples were not sufficiently represented in the administration. The Government should continue to make efforts to bring more indigenous people into the administration. The linguistic and educational issues concerning the indigenous peoples should also be resolved.

Efforts were being made to make justice accessible to all through the provision of interpreters and lawyers for the indigenous peoples, the delegation. The official language being Spanish, indigenous peoples encountered difficulties to bring their cases in Spanish expressing courts.

The Government had distributed thousands of hectares of land to indigenous peoples and would continue to do so in the future, the delegation said.

The constitutional reform, which aimed at recognizing the indigenous peoples, was not yet approved, the delegation said. However, the autonomy of the indigenous peoples had been explicitly cited in other legal texts.

The Government had prepared a legal document that would recognize land tenure to the indigenous peoples, the delegation said. The draft would be presented to the legislative body for approval.

Concerning the rights of women, the Government had promoted affirmative actions favouring the integration of women at all levels of public administration, the delegation said. Women’s education had also been given special attention through measures to facilitate their enrolment in schools.

The implementation of the peace accord required more than a Government’s one term in power, the delegation. The terms of the agreement had not yet been fully made into a public policy, and 48 per cent of its contents were still unimplemented. The Government believed that equal value should be given to the 400 commitments of the peace agreement.

The wearing of Maya costumes, which was prohibited in the past, was now allowed, the delegation said. Measures were also taken to convert monolingual posts into bilingual posts to allow indigenous people to have access to such jobs. The use of the Maya language had been encouraged in areas other than the region where it was spoken.

An Expert said that employers had refused the demands of workers for minimum wages to be fixed. When was the last time the Government fixed the minimum wage of workers? The right to strike and the right to join trade unions had certain restrictions. What measures were taken to reverse this situation?

Another Expert said that the labour law of Guatemala allowed the breakdown of trade unions between urban and rural areas, and between the different professions. How many federations of trade unions existed in the country? There were also 900 State trade unions and about 900 private trade unions; what was the difference between State and private?

One Expert asked if there existed a law protecting migrant workers. He requested statistical data on the number of Guatemalans who worked abroad and foreigners working in the country.

Another Expert said that he had received information from the International Labour Office (ILO) on complaints by the Confederation of Guatemalan Workers claiming that the Government was interfering in the work of labour inspectors who had no permanent jobs and revenue. What was the actual situation in the country concerning labour inspectors? Did the Government intend to formulate a law to abide by standards and requirements of the ILO?

An Expert expressed concern that the reforms in the labour law might have a negative effect on workers. Women had little access to social security and labour inspectors did not have regular jobs. In the rural areas, some workers were not receiving minimum wage. The Government did not inspect the repression which workers in the rural areas were subjected to when they addressed their demands to employers. What guarantees were given to the workers in the coffee producing areas, where there was a crisis due to the fall in coffee prices?

A woman applying for a job had to undergo a pregnancy test before she was employed, another Expert said. What would happen if she became pregnant once she was admitted? He asked about the function of the “Solidarismo” in relation to trade unions?

Responding, the delegation said that social security coverage was very low, covering only 15 per cent of the population. Only those who were affiliated and contributing to the social security scheme could be covered by it.

The number of labour inspectors was insufficient to protect and cover labour rights, the delegation said.

The Government had admitted that there were certain restrictions on collective bargaining, the delegation said. However, despite the restrictions, 38 collective agreements had been reached since 2002.

An Expert asked about the measures taken to cope with the increasing rate in trafficking in persons, particularly children who were taken out of the country for commercial sexual exploitation. He also asked about what steps the State party took concerning elderly people?

With regard to child labour, another Expert said that the situation was of concern because of the substantial number of children who were working instead of attending school. What serious measures were envisaged to attract more children to go to school instead of working?

What measures were taken to tackle the problem of drug trafficking in Guatemala, if it existed, an Expert asked.

Another Expert said that trafficking in women was a major problem for Guatemala. The country was also used as a transit point to other countries. The Government should take strict measures to resolve this problem. With regard to domestic violence, there had been indictments in only 38 cases out of the many complaints, which showed that much remained to be done.

Responding, the delegation said that progress had been made in drafting the new national housing policy and in setting up a fund. The Guatemalan Housing Fund had provided housing for 6,222 families who had been uprooted or who were the families of demobilized combatants.
The delegation said there was a programme for disabled persons which was conducted in collaboration with Israel. The action towards that category of people had boosted their self-esteem and had permitted them to integrate themselves into the society through work.

A census was needed to establish the exact number of people who had disappeared during the conflict, the delegation said. It would require ten years of work to establish the identities of victims of disappearances, torture and killings. The number of orphans and widows was estimated to be high, which indicated that the number of victims was also high. The massacre of the indigenous people, the disappearance of journalists and trade union leaders, and the killing of street children, all had to be investigated and the identities had to be established.

The availability of safe drinking water was a problem in Guatemala, the delegation said, adding that actual availability was compromised by factors of contamination. Many municipalities were taking measures to provide treated and purified water to the population. The Government was also making efforts to provide clean water instead of spending money on treating people affected by water-related diseases.

The Ministry of Labour had designed a special programme to tackle the problem of child labour, the delegation said. For children who wished to continue their studies, the Ministry was providing scholarships. Other activities for children had also been put in place in neighbourhoods to prevent them from working to support their families. The country’s legislative body was discussing a draft bill that aimed at prohibiting child labour. As part of a bilateral agreement with Mexico, trafficked children for sexual exploitation had been expatriated to Guatemala.

There was also a national plan of action to cover elderly citizens and disabled persons, the delegation said. Elderly people were provided with pensions and free medical care.

The Government had reduced the rate of maternal death to 192 per 1000, the delegation said. That was the fruit of the implementation of a comprehensive reproductive health programme in places where women were vulnerable. The change in attitudes of staff management in many hospitals had also contributed to the positive aspects of the steps taken by the State.

The number of abducted children was about 120 according to information from non-governmental organizations. Since the civil registry had been destroyed during the conflict, it had been impossible to identify those who had been reported to be missing. Also, in the past, the Government did not keep a systematic civil registry, which was among the obstacles in the search for abducted children.

On availability of space for sports and other recreational activities, the delegation said that they were insufficient. In the past, there was only one physical training school but now the number had increased to 14. The Government should make more efforts in that area.

An Expert said that the whole problem of Guatemala was related to the lack of education. The high rate of illiteracy had played a detrimental effect in all sectors of development programmes. What measures had been taken by the Government to reduce the rate of illiteracy?

Responding, the delegation said that the areas which the Government had most focused on were education and eradication of illiteracy. A substantial amount of money had been invested in the education sector; however, more resources were still lacking to cover all programmes in that field. Concerning the quality of education, the Government had evaluated the methods of teaching by raising the quality of teachers. Teaching training courses had been reformed with the view to raising teachers’ capacities to provide qualitative education. A special decree was also envisaged to tackle the problem of illiteracy.
Another Expert asked if there was a special commitment in the peace agreement on the restoration of archaeological and historical sites to allow tourists to visit them.

The Ministry of Culture was protecting holy places and other place of common interest, the delegation said. A draft bill was under discussion to further protect cultural heritages of the indigenous peoples and for the better management of historical and ceremonial sites of the Maya people.

Asked about the lynching of culprits, the delegation said it was true that such practices persisted in some areas following conflicts such as land disputes. The Government was making efforts to change people’s attitudes in that regard by promoting and disseminating a culture of peace and reconciliation.