With its picture perfect mountains, gorgeous textiles and rich tradition of Mayan culture
Guatemala is a tourist's dream. But for the majority of those who live there it has become a daily
struggle to survive as the country descends further into a chaos fueled by violence and political
corruption. Plagued with a laundry list of social ills including constant threats of extortion, an impotent
judicial system, brutal gang violence, corrupt police and a lack of basic...
more »With its picture perfect mountains, gorgeous textiles and rich tradition of Mayan culture
Guatemala is a tourist's dream. But for the majority of those who live there it has become a daily
struggle to survive as the country descends further into a chaos fueled by violence and political
corruption. Plagued with a laundry list of social ills including constant threats of extortion, an impotent
judicial system, brutal gang violence, corrupt police and a lack of basic services, Guatemala is a
country on the brink of collapse. Amidst all the calamity its people struggle to survive life in a failing
state.
A strategic hub for trafficking Columbian cocaine authorities say violence in Guatemala is now
worse than during the country's gruesome decades-long civil war. Between 1970 and 1996 the country
averaged 5,000 murders a year. Last year the number of killings soared to 6,200. Guatemala's people
face an overwhelming array of harm from street criminals, organized gangs, drug traffickers and even
the state police; forcing some to resort to vigilantism. As an editorial in a national daily last year put it,
"The spiral of violence is not ceasing, on the contrary it is being ratcheted up every day, increasing
worry and fear among a population hounded by kidnappers, extortionist and other vile assailants."
A major result of the violence has been a breakdown in basic services like healthcare and
transportation. The nation's bus system was paralyzed in November when drivers refused to work
following repeated attacks from organized gangs that resulted in the murder of nearly 200 bus workers.
The killings, thought to be a result of failure or refusal to make "protection payments," are just one
example of the widening scope of criminal influence in Central America's most populous nation.
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