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GUATEMALA CITY -- More than 4 decades aft Guatemalan soldiers and paramilitaries raped Indigenous women during their efforts to crush an insurgency successful the country’s 36-year civilian war, a tribunal connected Friday convicted 3 men of crimes against humanity successful the lawsuit and sentenced them to 40 years successful prison.
Thirty-six women from the Maya Achi Indigenous radical came guardant successful 2011 to question justness for the abuses they suffered betwixt 1981 and 1985. They came from Rabinal, a tiny municipality astir 55 miles (88 kms) northbound of the capital.
Six of them testified against the 3 men convicted Friday.
As the each pistillate 3 justice sheet prepared to denote the verdict, respective aged women huddled astir a young pistillate who translated the judges’ words from Spanish to Achi.
Judge María Eugenia Castellanos, president of the tribunal, said the women had been brave to travel connected repeated occasions to testify. “They are crimes of solitude that stigmatize the woman. It is not casual to talk of them,” she said.
Judge Marling Mayela González Arrivillaga said determination was nary uncertainty astir the women’s testimony.
In 2022, 5 different paramilitaries – men from the country trained by soldiers to assistance basal retired insurgents – were convicted of raping women and sentenced to 30 years successful prison. No soldiers person been tried for the acts.
Guatemala's civilian warfare pitted the service and constabulary against leftist rebels. It ended with the signing of bid accords successful 1996.
Of the 36 women who primitively came forward, 7 person died. The youngest was 19 erstwhile she was attacked.
Among the women who testified astatine this trial, was Pedrina Ixpatá. She is 63 now, but was 21 erstwhile she said she was assaulted. Félix Tum Ramírez, 1 of those convicted, had pointed her retired to soldiers earlier successful the time successful the plaza.
“At 9 astatine nighttime they came to instrumentality maine (from the house) and took maine to a large h2o tank. They pushed by caput successful the vessel and erstwhile I was astir to drown, fto maine retired and asked maine questions, but I said I didn’t cognize anything,” Ixpatá said.
Later, she was taken to a country connected the section subject basal wherever she said soldiers raped her. “I couldn’t instrumentality it. My full assemblage hurt,” Ixtapá said. She got pregnant, aborted and wasn’t capable to person children. Tum Ramírez was convicted of raping 2 women and for signaling 4 women to beryllium raped by others.
The Associated Press typically does not sanction radical who accidental they person been sexually assaulted unless they travel guardant publicly, arsenic Ixpatá has done.
One of the accused, Pedro Sánchez, told the tribunal Friday earlier the ruling was handed down that helium was not involved. He was convicted of raping 2 women.
“I americium guiltless of what they are accusing us, I don’t cognize immoderate of these women,” Sánchez testified earlier the verdict. Simeón Enríquez Gómez, the 3rd paramilitary, was besides convicted of raping 2 of the women.
Anthropologist Aura Cumes, who testified arsenic a forensic adept during the trial, said women suffered otherwise successful the warfare than men did.
“Sexual unit was a planned and deliberate method,” she said. “It was effectual for the army’s goals insomuch arsenic these brutal acts connected women had the effect of causing mistrust, of destroying steadfast relationships betwixt women and men, of splitting the household portion and destroying the assemblage societal fabric.”
Another pistillate testified successful closed league that she had been washing apparel successful the stream erstwhile paramilitaries and soldiers forced her wrong and told her to strip. She was raped archetypal by paramilitaries and past by soldiers.
Through an interpreter, she explained that they took her hubby that time and she ne'er saw him again. She was 4 months large astatine the time.
The Guatemalan Commission for Historical Clarification established by the United Nations to analyse quality rights violations during the civilian war, documented 1,465 cases of rape during the conflict. In 89% of the cases, the women were Indigenous Maya, according to the report.
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