GUATEMALA
Republic of Guatemala
A BEAUTY
THAT
HURTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
GUATEMALA
LOCATION
PEOPLE
HISTORY
POLITICS
CULTURE
ECONOMICS
CURRENT INTERNAL
SITUATION
CURRENT EXTERNAL
SITUATION
TAKE AN INTEREST
IN GUATEMALA !
FURTHER
READINGS
LOCATION
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


Guatemala is
located in Central
America.
Area 108,889 Km.
Highest Point;
4,220m Volcan
Tajamulco.
Lowest Point; Sea
Level.
GEOGRAPHY





66% of the country
is mountainous
62% is covered by
forests.
Four topographical
regions
Eighteen short
rivers
Four major lakes

Population:
10,510,000
THE PEOPLE

Density: 97/km2

Capital: Guatemala

Urban 39%

Ethnic Groups:
Ladinos 56%,
Amerindian 44%
THE PEOPLE


Languages: Spanish,
Amerindian
Religions: Roman
Catholic,
Protestant, tribal
religionist

67 female, 62 male

Literacy: 55%
THE CULTURE

Arte4 Maya Tz’utuhil Museaum and Gallery
HISTORICAL
Highlights

Mayan Civilization

The Fishing and Farming Villiages


Pedro de Alvarado came to conquer
Guatemala 1523
Independence from Spain came in 1821
HISTORICAL
Highlights


A succession of military presidents
Protest and repression became more
violent

Civil war broke out

New government January 2000!
The POLITICS



Government: Republic
Parties: Christian
Democratic, Democratic
Party of National
Cooperation, National
Centrist Union,
Revolutionary, others
Suffrage: Universal,
over 18.


Membership:
OAS, UN.
Subdivisions: 22
Departments.
The ECONOMICS

GDP: $12, 600,000,000

Per capita: $1,342

Monetary Unit: Quetzal(Q)

Public Debt; USD 2, 301,000,000
The ECONOMICS

Imports: USD $2,647,629,800

Exports: USD 1,502,610,4000



Trade Partners: Exports: U.S., El. Salvador,
Germany, Japan
Exports: Coffee, sugar, bananas, beef.
Imports:Fuel, machinery, grain, fertilizer,
transportation equipment
CURRENT SITUATION
INTERNAL RELATIONS

THE PEOPLE

ECONOMY AND THE LAND

HISTORY AND POLITICS
CURRENT SITUATION
INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS



SITUATIONAL UPDATE!
VISIT FROM THE
CANADIAN FOREIGN AID
MINISTER !
SUMMIT OF THE
AMERICAS!!
URGENT ACTION
SOLIDARITY WORK WITH GUATEMALA







Canada Guatemala Breaking the Silence
Network
Project Accompaniment
Amnesty International
United Nation Human Rights Commission
Arch Bishops Office for Human Rights
Canada World Youth
Peace Brigades
TAKE AN
INTEREST IN
GUATEMALA!




LATIN AMERICAN
STUDIES
http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/ca
/guatemala/
100 TIPS
http://www.1000traveltips.org/
guatemal.htm
FURTHER READINGS
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I, Rigoberta Menchu is the autobiography of Guatemala's
Indian Nobel Peace Prize winner - a very moving story of Mayan
life and government repression.
Time and the Highland Maya by Barbara Tedlock is an
anthropological study of the Quiché Indians of Momostenango.
Unfinished Conquest: The Guatemalan Tragedy by Victor
Perera looks at the history of the Maya and their situation in
modern Guatemala.
The Central America Fact Book by Tom Barry & Deb Preusch
examines the economic, political and military role of the USA in
Central America.
Birds of Guatemala by Hugh C Land is a field guide to surprisingly enough - the birds of Guatemala.
lamor of Innocence: Central American Short Stories, edited by
Barbara Paschke & David Volpendesta, contains 31 short
stories by writers from the region.