On Tuesday, May 26, 2015, Cultural Survival delivered a radio console and microphone to Radio Snuq Jolom Konob in Santa Eulalia, Huehuetenango, Guatemala. A generous grant from the Swift Foundation allowed Cultural Survival to donate this equipment to the station. Radio Snuq Jolom Konob was shut down on January 19, 2015, by the mayor of Santa Eulalia and his supporters for publicizing protests against hydroelectric companies operating in the region.
Since a report was released on April 16, 2015 by the International Center Against Impunity in Guatemala revealing a disturbing political scandal involving high ranking political figures, Guatemala has been politically unstable. From the resignation of the vice president to the continued protests demanding the resignation of President Otto Perez Molina, Guatemala approaches one of its hardest election years. Not since the 1950’s have the various ethnic and social populations of Guatemala united for a common cause. Preliminary elections are set to be held on September 6, 2015.
The past few weeks have been extremely important for the political future of Guatemala. On April 16, 2015, the Guatemalan Public Ministry, with the help of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala, unraveled one of the most shocking political scandals in the history of the country. The scandal is a multimillion-dollar scheme in which various individuals paid bribes to avoid customs duties on imports.
In April 2015, Cecilia Mérida, the partner of an environmental defender who was arrested and falsely charged and imprisoned in Guatemala testified at the World Bank in Washington, D.C.
On Tuesday April 21, 2015in partnership with the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), Cultural Survival began regional visits to various Indigenous community radios in Guatemala. As part of ICFJ’s Regional Initiative for Investigative Journalism in the Americas, this second phase has selected 20 Indigenous journalism projects focused on improving community radio programming to receive funding. An ICFJ trainer has been serving as a mentor and guide to the community journalists as they produce investigative radio stories.
Over the past few weeks, Guatemala has witnessed some of the worst violence against journalists in recent times. Election years are the most dangerous times for journalists in Guatemala, regardless of their political leanings. So far in 2015, three journalists have been killed, many have received threats and been assaulted, and over 10 Indigenous community leaders have been jailed.
On March 19, 2015, members of Radio Snuq Jolom Konob, alongside ancestral leaders, community elders, and various human rights organizations, took to the streets demanding that the town’s mayor re-open the radio premises in Santa Eulalia, Guatemala. Supporters and radio members gathered in front of the municipal building demanding to speak with the mayor to resolve this issues.
*Names have been changed to protect the identity of those interviewed
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