Welcoming the Stranger: Refuge for the Refugees

Bill Boyarsky / Truthdig Aug 7, 2014 A long and dangerous journey brings teenage Central American refugees to a community health center in South Los Angeles where pediatricians, psychologists and social workers treat them for post-traumatic stress disorder. Dig deeper ( 5 Min. Read )

A Commander of the Dos Erres Massacre Squad Gets 10 Years in Prison

Staff / Truthdig Feb 11, 2014 A federal judge sentenced a former Guatemalan Army officer to the maximum 10 years in prison Monday for immigration crimes, ruling that the ex-commando obtained U.S. citizenship by concealing his role in the massacre of 250 men, women and children in a Guatemalan village in 1982. Dig deeper ( 5 Min. Read )

Genocide Conviction of Efraín Ríos Montt Overturned

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig May 21, 2013 Guatemala's top court has thrown out the conviction of the general and former military dictator for genocide and crimes against humanity in what Amnesty International has called a "devastating blow for the victims of the serious human rights violations committed during the conflict." Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

The Three Heroines of Guatemala: The Judge, the Attorney General and the Nobel Peace Laureate

Amy Goodman / Truthdig May 16, 2013 Former Guatemalan President Efrain Rios Montt was hauled off to prison last Friday. It was a historic moment, the first time in history that a former leader of a country was tried for genocide in a national court. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Truthdiggers of the Week: Judges, Prosecutors of Efraín Ríos Montt

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig May 12, 2013 Those who Friday convicted the Guatemalan dictator of genocide and crimes against humanity showed that political killers can be brought to justice in the modern world. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Genocide Trial of Ex-Guatemalan Dictator Put on Hold

Staff / Truthdig Apr 22, 2013 An appeals court has suspended the trial of former Guatemalan dictator Efraín Ríos Montt after the country's president intervened just hours before a criminal court was scheduled to reach a verdict. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Where Women Can Have It All

Staff / Truthdig Nov 5, 2012 While Mitt Romney tries to make us believe socialism is evil, working mothers in France are evidence to the contrary; several stories about employers insisting their employees vote for Romney have come to light; meanwhile, activists in Guatemala are peacefully protesting mining in San José del Golfo in spite of violence against them. These discoveries and more. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

U.S. Deliberately Infected Guatemalans With Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Staff / Truthdig Sep 2, 2011 The United States conducted experiments on unsuspecting Guatemalans in the 1940s in order to test the effectiveness of penicillin on STDs. According to the BBC, "some 1,300 prisoners, psychiatric patients and sex workers were deliberately infected with syphilis, gonorrhea" and other diseases. (more) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Global Food Scheme Starves Guatemalan Poor

Staff / Truthdig Jun 2, 2011 Due to predatory trade policies endorsed by the IMF and the Guatemalan government, tax-evading transnational corporations partnered with local elites make a killing off the country's agricultural exports while more than half of its 14 million people suffer extreme poverty and threats of violence. (more) Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Guatemalan Ex-President Gets His Day in Court

Staff / Truthdig Jan 24, 2011 Justice is coming to Guatemala, as former President Alfonso Portillo has gone on trial in Guatemala City, accused of embezzling a cool $15 million. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Mexican Drug War Spills Into Guatemala

Staff / Truthdig Jan 8, 2011 The hold of Mexican drug traffickers has overflowed the country’s southern border, as the Zeta cartel has seized control of parts of northern Guatemala, leading the government there to declare a state of siege in the area. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

From Tuskegee to Guatemala Via Nuremberg

Amy Goodman / Truthdig Oct 6, 2010 News broke last week that the U.S. government purposefully exposed hundreds of men in Guatemala to syphilis in ghoulish medical experiments conducted during the late 1940s. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )