In January 2018, the government announced that it would create an independent office with the power to investigate. Instead, on April 8, 2019, it unveiled a powerless advisory post, little different from what has already existed for years. The Government of Canada failed to appoint an independent Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) with real powers […]
– Aboriginal activists group, Queensland, 1970sIf you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.
– Bishop Gerardi, April 24, 1998Peace is possible – a peace that is born from the truth that comes from each one of us and from all of us. It is a painful truth…it is a liberating and humanizing truth…It is a truth that challenges each one of us to recognize our individual and collective responsibility and to commit ourselves to action.
– Scott Zoltok, Intern at the New Hope Foundation (2012-2013)“Breaking the Silence means listening to those who’ve been silent for far too long, and once the silence is broken, it is amazing what you can hear.”
– Bertolt BrechtHay hombres que luchan un dia y son buenos. Hay otros que luchan un año y son mejores. Hay quienes luchan muchos años y son muy buenos. Pero hay los que luchan toda la vida: esos son los imprescindibles.
TAKE ACTION: Canada must provide promised powers to Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise
Consultations at Risk: Advances in the Escobal Mine Consultation Overshadowed by Constitutional Crisis
A new report Consultations at Risk: Advances in the Escobal Mine Consultation Overshadowed by Constitutional Crisis examines the ongoing consultation process of the Xinka people by Guatemala’s Ministry of Energy and Mines during the 2020 Constitutional Crisis. The document was produced by EarthWorks, IPS- Global Economy Program and the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network. The […]
Happy Holidays from Breaking the Silence
Dear friends, As 2020 draws to a close, we would like to take a moment to reflect on our past year together. With the beginning of the global pandemic in March, we had to adjust our work in Guatemala and explore how best to support our partners in the new COVID-19 reality. One of our […]
Update to the BTS Network: COVID-19’s Impacts on Partners’ work
The second wave of COVID-19 is sweeping the world. In the North, we expect impending vaccine shipments and the beginnings of massive vaccination campaigns. However, in Guatemala, the failed disbursement of governmental aid and continued government corruption has left the guarantee of vaccination for the most vulnerable in a precarious state and confidence in the […]
LETTER: OAS urged not to be complicit in human rights violations in Guatemala
On December 1st, 2020, Xinka, Ixil and Garifuna authorities met with a mission from the Organization of American States (OAS). They called on the OAS to recommend that President Giammetei and the Congress’ Executive Council resign and cease attacks against the Constitutional Court and Human Rights Ombudsperson. See below for a joint letter issued by […]
