VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHGT #0802/01 1782233
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 262233Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY GUATEMALA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5614
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 1196
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO 4878

C O N F I D E N T I A L GUATEMALA 000802 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/09/2018 
TAGS: OVIP ESOCI KCRM PHUM KJUS KDEM SNAR ECON GT
SUBJECT: DEPUTY SECRETARY'S MEETING WITH GUATEMALAN CIVIL 
SOCIETY 
 
REF: GUATEMALA 700 
 
Classified By: Ambassador James Derham for reasons 1.4(b,d). 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  Deputy Secretary Negroponte visited 
Guatemala June 5-6.  On June 6, he met with civil society 
leaders to discuss human rights and other key social issues. 
Civil society leaders expressed concern over impunity and 
corruption, and stressed the need to strengthen state 
institutions to address the increasing level of violence. 
They also highlighted the need for tax reform and greater 
investment in social development to alleviate poverty.  The 
Deputy Secretary reiterated that the United States has a 
strong interest in Guatemala and that it would continue to 
support its efforts to combat impunity through the Merida 
Initiative and other assistance programs.  End Summary. 
 
Weakness of State Institutions 
------------------------------ 
¶2. (SBU) On June 6, Deputy Secretary Negroponte, accompanied 
by WHA Assistant Secretary Shannon, Ambassador Derham, and 
staff, met with Guatemalan civil society leaders during a 
two-day visit to Guatemala.  The leaders raised a number of 
social issues, including human rights, corruption, and 
impunity, and stressed the need to strengthen state 
institutions to more effectively combat violence. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Human Rights Ombudsman Sergio Morales commented that 
Guatemala faces many challenges -- a poor population, a weak 
state, a tight budget, rampant corruption -- but his greatest 
concern was impunity.  He noted that impunity affects all 
sectors of society but that the state is unable to meet even 
its minimal obligations due to institutional weaknesses.  He 
estimated that 97 percent of all crimes are never prosecuted. 
 (Note:  In contrast, in recent press reports, the Attorney 
General's Office claimed that 43.9 percent of all cases, 
including cases "dismissed for lack of merit" or mediated, 
are resolved.) 
 
¶4. (SBU) According to Helen Mack, Director of the Myrna Mack 
Foundation, impunity not only affects all sectors but also 
impedes democratic development and has an economic cost. 
Corruption extends to political parties as well as public 
officials.  Relating her own experience with the judicial 
system in the aftermath of the 1990 murder of her sister, she 
noted that it took 14 years and the support of the 
international community to obtain a conviction against three 
former military officers, who nevertheless remain at large. 
She counted herself among the fortunate few -- the "elite" -- 
who had the political influence to obtain the support of the 
international community to press for results.  Manfredo 
Marroquin, Executive Director for Citizen Action, identified 
the lack of consensus for legal reform as a major impediment 
to institutional strengthening. 
 
Legacy of Internal Conflict 
--------------------------- 
¶5. (SBU) Civil society leaders discussed the impact of the 
internal conflict on the current climate of impunity.  Mario 
Minera, Executive Director of the Human Rights Legal Action 
Center (CALDH), noted that his organization has been involved 
in bringing legal action against former military officers for 
human rights abuses allegedly committed during the internal 
conflict.  He said that most cases remain unresolved and 
emphasized the importance of human rights monitoring by the 
international community.  Former Vice Minister of Foreign 
Affairs Marta Altolaguirre expressed concern over the lack of 
investigations and stressed the need to systematize the 
investigative process within the Attorney General's Office. 
Qinvestigative process within the Attorney General's Office. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Fredy Peccerelli, Executive Director of the 
Guatemalan Forensic Anthropology Foundation (FAFG), 
characterized the current climate of impunity as a legacy of 
the armed conflict.  He noted that 236 women were killed in 
Guatemala City in 2006, but that very few perpetrators were 
apprehended and that one-third of the victims were not even 
identified.  He added that no one in the military had yet 
been prosecuted for massacres and genocide committed during 
the internal armed conflict, which claimed 160,000 lives and 
"disappeared" an additional 40,000 to 45,000.  He complained 
that the former members of the Civil Defense Patrol recently 
convicted and sentenced for the 1982 Rio Negro Massacre were 
convicted of murder rather than genocide (reftel). 
 
¶7. (SBU) According to Human Rights Ombudsman Morales, there 
are four or five military officers currently serving prison 
sentences but not for crimes committed during the internal 
conflict.  Morales explained that there is a law of national 
reconciliation that pardons politically motivated killings 
committed during the internal conflict but that it excludes 
 
genocide and massacres. 
 
Tax Reform 
---------- 
¶8. (SBU) Civil society leaders discussed the need for tax 
reform.  They noted the lack of economic security and the 
need for more tax revenues to strengthen state institutions. 
Gustavo Porras, Consultant for the Dutch Institute for 
Democracy, said that many companies, including 15 large sugar 
exporters, pay minimal tax.  Raquel Zelaya, Executive 
Director of the Association for Research and Social Studies 
(ASIES), pointed out that the state lacks resources and has 
no effective means of prosecuting tax evaders.  She estimated 
that the government invests less than 12 percent of state 
revenues in social development and that Guatemalans perceive 
the state as ineffective in ensuring their economic security. 
 (Note:  In 2007, tax revenues totaled Q31,543.3 million (USD 
4,206 million), or 12.3 percent of GDP.) 
 
CICIG 
----- 
¶9. (C) Helen Mack expressed doubt over the ability of the 
UN-led International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala 
(CICIG) to achieve real advances in combating impunity given 
the lack of cooperation by some Guatemalan government 
institutions, the difficulty of collecting evidence for 
investigations, and its two-year mandate.  She noted that it 
took one year to install and staff CICIG, and that its 
effectiveness will be limited because "everyone's hands are 
tainted." 
 
Merida Initiative 
----------------- 
¶10. (SBU) Mack complained that the $50 million proposed for 
Central America under the Merida Initiative is insufficient, 
especially given that Guatemala shres a porous border with 
Mexico.  Former Vice Miister Altolaguirre expressed concern 
over the growing problem of Mexican narcotraffickers crossing 
the border into Guatemala.  The influx of narcotrafficking is 
affecting Guatemala's social climate, including its lack of 
social development, lack of opportunities, and socio-economic 
disparity.  WHA Assistant Secretary Shannon outlined the 
Merida Initiative, and said that assistance levels could grow 
if recipient governments show progress. 
 
Support for Guatemala 
--------------------- 
¶11. (SBU) Deputy Secretary Negroponte expressed appreciation 
for the group's insights and perspectives.  He acknowledged 
the many challenges confronting Guatemala and reiterated the 
U.S. commitment to support Guatemala, both through the Merida 
Initiative and ongoing bilateral assistance programs. 
 
¶12. (U) This cable has been cleared by D staff. 
Derham