Searching for Justice in Guatemala
Meetings with PCS and women's groups
While in Guatemala City, we meet with PCS staff. There are many things to do: debrief on the Huehuetenango forum; look over financial reports; discuss the upcoming national election and its impact on our work; plan upcoming events, and talk about potential strategies for program development.
Kaqla members
Along with Samantha Sams, coordinator of the CAMEX program, and Flory Yax, who works on the gender program, we also meet with two Guatemala City-based counterparts, Kaqla and Sector de Mujeres. Kaqla is a group of Mayan women intellectuals and activists, who promote Mayan women's full participation in all aspects of social life in Guatemala. Sector de Mujeres is a national network of women's organizations, which formed to provide women's input into the peace negotiations; today it monitors the implementation of peace accord commitments specific to women, and promotes women's political participation and leadership in civil society. We begin by asking them to offer their analysis of the political context; we move on to discuss their current activities and challenges.
Flory Yax
One issue that they all identify is the need to strengthen young women's leadership in their organizations. The current leadership within the women's movement is increasingly tired after years of conflict and struggle, and the need for generational renewal is becoming more urgent. Alison and Samantha Sams note that other women's organizations in Mexico and El Salvador are facing similar issues. We leave the meeting with new ideas about how PCS can support the strengthening of young women's leadership across the region.
| Reviewed July 31, 2009 |  |
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