Indigenous women gather in Guatemala to demand rights

Guatemala City, Oct 12 (EFE).- Some 200 indigenous women from six Latin American countries rejected Wednesday the “criminalization and prosecution” of human rights defenders during a rally in Guatemala City, as part of the indigenous Day of Resistance.

Indigenous women from Honduras, Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Mexico and El Salvador, stood in front of the Palace of Culture, seat of the Government of Guatemala, as part of the commemoration of the Day of Indigenous Resistance.

The purpose of the act was to demand an end to criminal prosecution against human rights defenders, activists and women leaders.

“We demand that the states not criminalize the women and men who fight for democracy and governance,” read the statement signed by indigenous women’s organizations in Latin America.

The women expelled from the place a group of alleged military veterans who participated during the internal armed conflict in Guatemala from 1960 to 1996 and were there demonstrating against congress in search of financial compensation.

The concentrated women were part of a meeting called “Third Summit of Indigenous Women of Abya Yala”, which was held in Guatemala from Sunday to Wednesday.

During the meeting, the women discussed the “government and systematic violence” exercised against them in their countries.

Organizers said the summit in Guatemala served as a space to analyze and propose applicable strategies to strengthen their rights. EFE

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