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» Grantee Profile: Trópico Verde
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Guatemala’s devastating thirty-six year civil war came to an end in 1996. The Peace Accords that formally ended the war established a framework for ensuring the human rights of the country’s indigenous Mayan majority. However, ineffective public institutions, pervasive corruption and violence, and a culture of impunity for human rights abusers continue to prevent the implementation of the Accords.
Guatemalan human rights activists are pressing for the government to prosecute the military and paramilitary forces responsible for atrocities during the civil war as well as for continuing attacks against human rights defenders. They call for access to land for peasant farmers violently displaced during and after the war, and with no other means to provide for their families. Guatemalan rights defenders also insist on a justice system that protects the rights of vulnerable populations, such as women and indigenous people.
In response to on-the-ground priorities, the Fund’s grant-making strategy for Guatemala is: 1) to promote the establishment of rule of law via a) supporting Guatemalan organizations that are pressing the government to hold human rights abusers accountable and b) supporting local efforts to increase access to justice for all including vulnerable populations such as women and indigenous peoples; and 2) to promote land rights for peasant farmers and indigenous peoples.
The Fund aims to provide sustainable support for human rights organizations. To that end, we maintain a long-term focus on specific countries and regions where we believe strategic grant-making can make a difference in advancing human rights protections over time. The Fund has had a grants program in Guatemala since 2003.
