GUATEMALA

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• As Guatemala enters CAFTA US coalition calls for a new trade model
• Bullets and bananas: The violence of free trade in Guatemala
• Executive committee is established to oversee Taiwan-Guatemala
• Guatemala accused in CAFTA labor complaint
• Guatemala anti-FTA vigil grows
• Guatemala FTA mostly politics: economists
• Guatemala joins trade agreement
• Guatemala postpones ratification of FTA with US
• Guatemala pushes FTA talks with Taiwan
• Guatemala set to quash FTA protests with troops
• Guatemala to strengthen Mercosur ties
• Guatemala to strengthen ties with India
• Guatemala to sue US for dumping
• Guatemala union heads killed despite US trade deal
• Guatemala youth join anti-FTA rally
• Guatemala: Between the sword and impotence
• Guatemala: Fears and hopes raised by free trade with US
• Guatemala: FTA neolib affect food supply
• Guatemalan court examines FTA appeal
• Guatemalan FTA with US said risky
• Guatemalan groups vow to continue protests against FTA
• Guatemalan orgs: No US FTA
• Guatemalan president re-affirms ties with Taiwan
• Guatemalans march against US FTA
• Guatemalans Occupy Farms Rejecting FTA
• Guatemalans say US free trade costly
• Labor rights in Guatemala aided little by trade deal
• Legislature ratifies Guatemalan FTA
• Legislature ratifies Taiwan-Guatemala free trade agreem
• Mexico-Guatemala: The other border
• Panama Guatemala ready free trade
• Panama-Guatemala free trade a ’historic step’
• RDC files notice of intent to submit claims for arbitration
• Summary of events of 9 March against the DR-CAFTA
• Taiwan Guatemala expected to ink free trade accord
• Thousands of Guatemalans protest against ratification
• Trade agreement hits snag on Guatemala law
• US-Guatemala FTA unconstitutional

Los Angeles Times | April 24, 2008

Guatemala accused in CAFTA labor complaint

Groups allege that the government’s failure to uphold its own laws protecting workers has led to intimidation and even killings of trade unionists.

By Marla Dickerson, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

MEXICO CITY — Guatemalan and U.S. labor groups filed a complaint Wednesday with the U.S. Department of Labor alleging that Guatemala had failed to uphold its own labor laws as required under the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

The complaint alleges that, despite provisions in the pact requiring workers’ rights to be protected, Guatemalan trade unionists have been threatened, fired and even assassinated — including a union official who was shot dead in front of his young children last year. The groups called on the Bush administration to initiate dispute settlement proceedings, which could result in fines of as much as $15 million annually against the Guatemalan government.

The action is the first of its kind under CAFTA, a trade deal whose members are the United States, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. But the complaint underscores a long-standing criticism of U.S. trade policy by American unions, which contend that labor protections in trade agreements are largely meaningless because they aren’t enforced.

Human rights groups and unions have lodged nearly two dozen complaints with U.S. authorities over labor issues in trade pacts since 1994. None has resulted in sanctions or fines against trading partners, according to Thea Lee, policy director of the AFL-CIO, which filed Wednesday’s complaint with six Guatemalan unions.

That record, she said, is a big reason that organized labor opposes the pending Colombia Free Trade Agreement. Congress has delayed voting on that deal in part over concerns about violence against trade union leaders in the South American nation.

“We would like to see some evidence that our government is willing to enforce the labor provisions in any existing” free-trade agreement before entering into new ones, she said.

Charlotte Ponticelli, deputy undersecretary of Labor for international affairs, said her agency would “thoroughly review and investigate these allegations within the parameters set by the CAFTA agreement.”

The petition filed Wednesday includes five separate cases of alleged labor violations against members of unions representing apparel, agricultural and port workers.

The most high-profile case is the death of Pedro Zamora, general secretary of the Union of Port Quetzal Company Workers. That union has had contentious relations with Guatemala’s government, stemming from worker firings that ended up in court.

According to the complaint, Zamora was ambushed in front of his home Jan. 15 of last year by a car full of people who fired about 100 gunshots at his pickup truck. Zamora was struck 20 times. His 3-year-old son was shot in a leg and the abdomen but survived.

Lee said eight Guatemalan trade unionists had been murdered since the trade agreement was implemented in that country in 2006. She said no arrests had been made.

“If workers in other countries are shot down . . . for trying to organize a union, their wages are artificially suppressed,” Lee said. “That becomes a competitive problem for American companies as well as for American workers.”

Trade advocates say the pacts give the U.S. leverage it wouldn’t otherwise have.

“Without a [free trade agreement] we could not even look into these matters,” said Gretchen Hamel, spokeswoman for the U.S. trade representative’s office in Washington.

Central News Agency, Taiwan

Guatemala pushes FTA talks with Taiwan

31 July 2004

Guatemalan President Oscar Berger called for his country and the Republic of China Thursday to hold talks for signing a free trade agreement as soon as possible.

Berger made the comments when he received R.O.C. Legislative Yuan Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (¤ýª÷¥­) and four other R.O.C. legislators, who are currently in Guatemala to attend the July 30 forum for parliamentary speakers from Central American and Caribbean nations.

Emphasizing that Guatemala and the ROC have traditionally had friendly and close relations, the president said the two countries should forge ahead by uniting their forces.

Saying that the current Guatemalan government is clean, honest and efficient, Berger expressed the hope that the R.O.C. government would encourage Taiwan businesspeople to invest in Guatemala. The president also guaranteed that the Guatemalan authorities will do their utmost to help Taiwan investors.

Touching on how to promote substantial relations between the two countries, the president said that signing an FTA is very important, adding that he hopes Guatemala and the ROC will be able to begin negotiations for the signing of such an agreement as soon as possible.

Berger also said he hopes the R.O.C.’s airliners would operate regular flight services between Taiwan and Guatemala.

In response to President Chen Shui-bian’s (³¯¤ô«ó) invitation conveyed by the R.O.C.’s legislative speaker, Berger said that he promised to visit the island at an appropriate time.

Noting that he and President Chen have established a very close friendship dating back to the time when they served as mayors, Berger also invited Chen to visit Guatemala.

Meanwhile, Wang expressed his admiration for what Berger has done to promote his nation’s image in the international community and for the Guatemalan first lady’s charity services for the poor.

Washington Post, USA

Labor Rights in Guatemala Aided Little by Trade Deal

By Peter S. Goodman, Washington Post Staff Writer

16 March 2007

GUATEMALA CITY — Day and night, workers at the port of Quetzal on Guatemala’s Pacific coast load fruit from surrounding plantations and clothing stitched in local factories onto freighters bound for Long Beach, Calif., a flow of goods that has swelled since a Central American trade agreement with the United States took force last year.

Under a provision that was crucial to getting the deal through Congress, working conditions for the longshoremen, along with laborers throughout Central America, were supposed to improve. Governments promised to strengthen labor laws, and the Bush administration pledged money to help.

But on the evening of Jan. 15, the head of the port workers union became a symbol of the risks that still confront workers who press their rights in Guatemala.

Pedro Zamora, then in the midst of contentious negotiations with management, was driving on the dusty road through his village, his two sons at his side, when gunmen shot him at least 20 times, killing him, said prosecutors in Guatemala City. One boy was grazed in the knee by a bullet; the other was unharmed.

Nearly two years have passed since the countries of Central America vowed to strengthen worker rights as they sought votes in Congress for the Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA. Yet there has been little if any progress, according to diplomats, labor inspectors, workers and managers.

“The situation is the same now as it was,” said Homero Fuentes, director of the Commission for the Verification of Codes of Conduct, a Guatemalan group hired by multinational companies to inspect local factories and plantations. “The law hasn’t been reformed, and people just don’t obey the law. There’s a culture of impunity.”

The Bush administration is facing intense resistance in the Democratic Congress as it seeks approval for new trade deals with Peru, Colombia and Panama. The tense labor situation in Guatemala and other countries covered by such deals helps to explain why.

Democratic leaders negotiating terms of the new trade pacts with the administration are demanding stringent labor protections. They argue that previous deals such as CAFTA have been too weak on labor rights, expediting the shift of manufacturing to countries where goods are cheap because workers are exploited.

The Bush administration counters that trade deals have improved the lot of laborers by creating jobs and establishing basic standards, even as it signals willingness to insert stricter rules in the new agreements to gain the assent of the Democratic leadership.

U.S. Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab said last month on Capitol Hill that when countries negotiate free-trade deals with the United States, “the situation on the ground for workers in those countries is vastly improved.”

As the administration portrays it, problems in Central America reflect a dearth of resources, not weak law. Over the past two years, Congress has allocated $60 million for programs aimed at boosting the ability of governments in the region to enforce labor and environmental laws, delivering computers and automobiles and helping to train judges and inspectors.

Schwab urged The Washington Post to seek details from the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City. There, four American officials, plus two who joined by videoconference from El Salvador, would speak only on condition that they not be named. They said they had no data showing increased compliance with labor laws in Central America, though they emphasized that the programs were new.

“We haven’t seen a significant improvement,” one official said. “It’s a process.”

Guatemalan authorities said the American-funded programs did not tackle the root cause of abuse — the power of employers to manipulate labor inspectors and judges.

“It’s very widespread that if workers file complaints or try to organize a union, they can be fired,” said Gustavo A. Campos, who leads a program funded by the United States that trains Guatemalan labor inspectors and educates workers. “The part that’s still missing here is the ability to coerce compliance.”

At the labor ministry, one inspector said attempting to enforce the law puts inspectors’ careers at risk. “There’s a lot of pressure to rule in the employer’s favor,” said the inspector, Marco Tulio Castillo. “We’re not allowed to do our jobs.”

Schwab said labor provisions in the trade deals negotiated by the Bush administration are better than nothing. Without the promise of U.S. trade, “what incentive would these governments have to improve their labor standards?” she said in an interview. She said trade boosts workers’ rights in poor countries by increasing the presence of global brands: Loath to be linked to sweatshops, these companies force factory managers to obey rules.

Managers in Guatemala said foreign firms demand adherence to labor standards but also demand lower prices, with constant threats to shift work to China if the Guatemalan firms don’t go along.

“Your country is pressuring us to respect our own laws, laws that hinder the competitiveness of Guatemala compared to China, which does not have the same respect for labor rights,” said Carlos Arias, a lobbyist for the Guatemalan Chamber of Industry. “When you have to pay the minimum wage and all the fringe benefits, your costs increase.”

At a factory run by a company called Avandia on the eastern fringes of Guatemala City, nearly 700 workers make dress pants for the American retailer Jones Apparel Group, which owns the Nine West and Gloria Vanderbilt brands. Five current and former workers said in interviews that factory bosses often forced them to work unpaid overtime. Cristina Perez, a mother of four, said security guards sometimes locked her in the factory late into the night, even as she protested that she was a nursing mother.

The drinking water was dirty, the workers said, and the bathrooms lacked soap and water — except on days when someone from Jones came to visit.

“All of a sudden, they were giving the appearance that they treat us well,” said Karen Chacon. “Actually, they treat us like animals.”

Last November, nine workers, including Chacon and Perez, signed a petition to set up a labor committee, a precursor to a union. They filed the petition at the Labor Ministry and got a court injunction protecting their jobs. The next day, all nine were fired. Avandia’s personnel manager, Jorge Meng, said the workers were let go because of declining production, not because of the petition.

In an interview, Ira M. Dansky, Jones’s general counsel, said it was “unclear” what transpired at Avandia, but he confirmed that if the workers were fired for organizing, that would violate the company’s code of conduct. Jones is continuing to do business with Avandia, he said.

“We use many hundreds of factories throughout the world,” Dansky said. “At any given time, there are always violations. We try to continue to work with the factories to improve things.”

At the port of Quetzal, workers are still reeling from Zamora’s killing, and they wonder who might be next. A few weeks after Zamora was shot dead, two men active in a Guatemalan street vendors union were killed.

“All of us as union leaders are under the same risk,” said L?zaro Reyes, now leading the port union. “We don’t go out. We try not to be seen.”

As officials at the U.S. Embassy cited efforts to improve Guatemala’s labor rights, one sought to discredit the appearance that a union leader had been assassinated for his work. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the case was “murky,” adding that the U.S. government had learned from Guatemala’s president or vice president that Zamora had been “a violent man” whose actions triggered complaints by women and police. Pressed for details, the official said she had none.

Mario Castaneda, a Guatemalan prosecutor, said Zamora’s murder was probably connected to his job. “Because of his union work, the management of the port may have been involved,” he said. No charges have been filed in the killing, and management denies any role.

Recently, Castaneda said, he and a colleague were investigating the Zamora case in the city of Escuintla when a stranger approached them.

“He said we should be careful,” Castaneda said, “because people could shoot us.”

Special correspondent Robert Perillo contributed to this report.

IPS, 22 May 2006

GUATEMALA:
Fears and Hopes Raised by Free Trade with US

Alberto Mendoza

GUATEMALA CITY, May 22 (IPS) - With just a few days to go before the removal of trade barriers between Guatemala and the United States, social organisations are afraid that living standards in Guatemala will decline, while the government and the business community predict an influx of investment, economic growth, and the creation of thousands of new jobs.

The Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) signed by the United States with five countries from this region plus the Dominican Republic overcame the last obstacle to implementation last week in Congress, and is due to be signed into law this week by President Óscar Berger.

The legislature passed a bill last week to adapt the country’s legislation to CAFTA provisions on government procurement, trade in services, the financial sector, patent protection and the environment.

After Berger signs the bill, it will be sent to Washington to be reviewed by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, which will give the green light to Guatemala’s incorporation in the treaty, which has already been fully approved by El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.

The legislature of Costa Rica, the fifth Central American signatory, has yet to ratify the free trade agreement.

Guatemalan society is divided over CAFTA, which has been staunchly opposed by campesino, labour and indigenous movements since the start of the negotiations in January 2003. Meanwhile, big business, the export industry and the government defend the accord as a path for drawing foreign investment and boosting development.

The agreement, which creates a free trade zone by instantly removing a large number of import tariffs and gradually phasing out the rest, will facilitate the cross-border movement of merchandise between the participating nations. It will also enforce intellectual property rights.

The United States is already the top trading partner of Guatemala, whose exports to the U.S. amounted to 917.9 million dollars in 2005.

Cotton and knit garments are Guatemala’s chief export products, followed by tropical fruit and coffee.

According to Guatemalan Economy Minister Marcio Cuevas, the treaty will guarantee market access for Guatemalan products like jewelry, textiles, apparel, footwear and canned tuna. In addition, it will reduce barriers for Guatemalan sugar, alcohol and cheese.

Cuevas noted that the Bank of Guatemala projects that gross domestic product (GDP) will increase 0.6 percent as a result of the agreement in the first year after it goes into effect.

But not all Guatemalan products will enjoy advantages under CAFTA. Corn, beans, rice, chicken, pork and beef are seen as vulnerable to the expected flood of cheaper products from the United States, according to a report drawn up for Congress by Pablo Rodas Martín, director of the Association of Social Research and Studies (ASIES).

The cases of corn and beans are especially worrisome, as they are staples of the Guatemalan diet.

Social and campesino movements are worried that small farmers will be unable to compete with lower cost products from the United States. However, they are not opposed to the opening of markets, but are demanding better access for their products.

Analyst Erwin Pérez, with the Incidencia Democrática association, said “those who already have the financial capacity to export to the United States will continue to do so, but poor campesinos could run into even greater difficulties in placing their products on the local market.”

To mitigate the possible negative effects of CAFTA, the political parties agreed to approve a package of compensation measures before the treaty went into effect - but during last week’s debate, the lawmakers forgot their promise.

The measures were to focus on agricultural reconversion, improvement of infrastructure and social protections, and support for technological change, said Carlos Barreda, with the Collective of Social Organisations (COS).

But in order to adopt such measures, “the state would need funds, which it should collect through taxes on income, property and unproductive land,” said Barreda.

With respect to the fears of negative impacts, the Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and Financial Associations of Guatemala (CACIF) - the country’s leading business association - stated that with the increase in investment, “up to 60,000 new formal sector jobs will be created, and the market will become orderly, so that the state, workers and businesses will all benefit.”

The more than 70 percent of Guatemalans who depend on the informal economy for a living, such as those who hawk their fake brand name goods at the myriad street stalls crowding the cities, will also be hit hard by CAFTA.

Pérez told IPS that many jobs were at risk due to CAFTA’s intellectual property rights provisions. He pointed out that in El Salvador, clashes have already broken out between the security forces and street vendors.

The stringent intellectual property protection stipulated by the free trade deal has come under fire with regard to pharmaceutical products. Analysts like Pérez believe that medicine prices will be driven up, further complicating access to, and the right to, health care by the poor.

For instance, the treaty requires governments to guarantee exclusive use of test data on pharmaceutical products for five years, to prevent copying. Until now, Guatemala’s legislation did not offer that protection for new medicines.

Up to 40 different pharmaceutical products will enjoy that protection, including antiretroviral drugs used to treat people living with HIV/AIDS, said Luis Velásquez, head of the Association of Guatemalan Pharmaceutical Industries (ASINFARGUA). Thus, the country will not be able to produce generic versions of these drugs nor import cheaper versions of them from countries like Brazil or India.

The U.S. Embassy has stated that there is no reason that drug prices should rise after CAFTA goes into effect. It also pointed out that the United States is itself a major consumer of generic pharmaceutical products.

If the issues negotiated within the framework of CAFTA have generated controversy, so have questions that have been left out. Juan García, the head of the Immigrants in Action Committee, complained that “freedom of movement is guaranteed for capital, but not for workers.”

He also criticised the fact that the agreement does not address migration problems. “Nor does it facilitate the sending of remittances,” or the design of methods and mechanisms for taking advantage of this significant flow of money, he added.

The controversy has not ended with last week’s approval of the bill to adapt Guatemala’s national laws to CAFTA provisions. On behalf of development, human rights and women’s groups, COS filed legal action with the Constitutional Court, arguing that the treaty is unconstitutional. The Court is to hand down its verdict in three weeks.

The groups argue that CAFTA violates the country’s economic and social laws, that it will limit access to health care, and that it fails to respect the identity and culture of indigenous groups. They also say the public was not consulted before the trade agreement was signed.

In addition, there are complaints about the way Congress dealt with the treaty. After several days of street demonstrations and disturbances, the legislature hurriedly ratified the agreement on Mar. 9, 2005, by a vote of 126 to 12.

The next step, the bill for adapting the country’s legislation to the trade agreement, remained at the mercy of political party disputes until May 11, when half of the chapters were unexpectedly approved after more than eight hours of debate.

Activists suspect that secret agreements were reached by lawmakers in order to push the bill through. Lucrecia Ardón, secretary of the Mesa Global, an umbrella group that brings together 27 of the country’s most prominent social organisations, said that just before the vote was taken, “there were under the table deals for the divvying up of power and an increase in the salaries” of legislators.

May 10 was a busy day for Guatemala’s lawmakers. On one hand, they approved a budget increase equivalent to one million dollars, supposedly for the purchase of computers for Congress, but which actually went towards the salaries of advisers, temporary staff and expense allowances.

At the same time, the heads of CACIF were lobbying hard for approval of the bill, holding meetings with the legislators who voted to ratify CAFTA last year.

Human rights activist and parliamentary Deputy Nineth Montenegro, with the Encuentro por Guatemala party, told IPS that on the night of May 10, around 90 lawmakers were invited to a meeting which neither she nor other representatives of her left-leaning sector were allowed to attend.

On May 18, the conservative governing Great National Alliance and the right-wing opposition Guatemalan Republican Front of former dictator Efraín Ríos Montt (1982-1983) joined forces to give the final shove to the removal of trade barriers with the United States.

China Post, Taiwan

Executive committee is established to oversee Taiwan-Guatemala FTA

15 August 2006

TAIPEI, CNA.An executive committee was established in Taipei yesterday to oversee the execution of a Taiwan-Guatemala free trade agreement (FTA) that took effect July 1.

Economic Minister Steve Chen and his Guatemalan counterpart, Marcio Cuevas, announced the inauguration of the new commission at a ceremony held at the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

Chen said the committee will be charged with handling matters related to the FTA, including addressing bilateral trade disputes.

The committee passed at its meeting unified “country of origin” certification forms and enforcement rules for resolving trade disputes under the FTA.

The agreement is the second such accord Taiwan has signed following a similar pact with Panama. It is also Guatemala’s first FTA with an Asian country.

Describing the two countries’ economies as complementary to each other, Chen said the free trade pact will spawn new business opportunities for both sides, with Guatemalan farm produce finding new markets in Taiwan while Taiwan’s industrial goods will enter Guatemala on better terms.

Under the FTA, Chen said, Taiwan has agreed to offer an annual 60,000 ton quota for Guatemalan sugar, which, besides benefiting Guatemalan farmers, is expected to help stabilize domestic sugar prices.

As a Guatemalan FTA with the United States has entered into force, Chen said, the Central American country can become a major bastion for Taiwan manufacturers,particularly textile makers, seeking to tap into the vast U.S. market.

Under the FTA, 3,964 categories of Taiwan-produced items can now enjoy tariff-free status on entering the Guatemalan market, while Taiwan offers tariff free privileges for Guatemalan products.

Besides using the tariff-free treatment to expand their Guatemalan market shares, Chen said, Taiwan companies can also set up footholds in Guatemala to explore regional markets.

Xinhua Net, China

Thousands of Guatemalans protest against ratification of FTA with US

MEXICO CITY, March 1 (Xinhuanet) — Thousands of public-school teachers, peasants, university students and workers rallied in Guatemala City Tuesday against the imminent approval of a free trade agreement (FTA) with the United States.

According to reports from the Guatemalan capital, the Trade Union and Popular Action Unity (UASP) said that at least 25,000 people joined the protest at the Constitution Square, in front of the National Palace of Culture, and in the vicinity of the Congress.

The demonstrators also blocked three main routes of access intothe Guatemalan capital. No incidents have been reported yet.

The government has ordered the police to take actions to prevent demonstrators from breaking into the presidential residence and the premises of the Congress.

The protesters, who argued the agreement will result in a sale increase of foreign goods and consequently harm domestic interests,called the government to hold a referendum and let people decide the fate the FTA, signed by the Central American countries with the United States last year.

However, Guatemalan President Oscar Berger insisted on Monday he will not call a referendum prior to the ratification of the FTA,saying it is unnecessary and that the Congress has already listened to the opinion of all social sectors.

The UASP leader, Luis Lara, told the press that to prevent the Guatemalan parliament from approving the FTA, the demonstrations will continue in the coming days.

“President Oscar Berger, the rich, and their representatives, have to understand that the FTA will only benefit a few people, and for most people, it will only bring marginalization and hunger,” he added.

Prensa Latina, Cuba

Guatemalans Occupy Farms Rejecting FTA

2 July 2006

Guatemala, Jul 2 (Prensa Latina) Guatemalan farmers occupy Sunday six state farms in the country’s north and eastern regions for three consecutive days, protesting against the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with United States.

Claudia Villagran, assistant secretary to the Presidency’s Agricultural Affairs, stated that negotiations with the Farmer Unity Committee to solve these cases will start Tuesday.

Two of those farms are under the custody of the army, which presented a demand at the Public Ministry to achieve eviction for this way, spokesperson Jorge Ortega said.

These lands were occupied as part of protests for the FTA implementation July 1, which will have immediate negative effects for small and medium farmers.

According to a list published by Diario Oficial, hundreds of US agricultural products can already enter Guatemala without paying taxes.

One of the Guatemalan farmers’ problems will be the lack of a Law on Rural Development, to compensate for losses due to the trade pact with the United States, which puts them to compete on equal terms with a more powerful economy.

noaltlc1_honduras

Guatemal Court Examines FTA Appeal

Guatemala City, Mar 18 2006 (Prensa Latina) Guatemalan organizations described the Constitutional Court ruling to give leave to an appeal against a free trade agreement (FTA) with the US as a firm step to defend the nation’s interests.

This means people’s actions have taken the FTA to the dock,” said National Struggle Front leader Roberto Madriz, terming it a historic deed ensured by unity and alliance, even among sectors such as small and median entrepreneurs, who had remained separated from people.

He referred to the United Nations Development Program report, which said the FTA would have a negative impact on Guatemala’s food if the government did not take a series of measures before its implementation.

The FTA will bring unemployment and will affect 500,000 families presently living on corn, as their production will be replaced by generic products, according to Madriz.

He also assured the government will lose over 600 million dollars given tax exemptions on US products, one year after the accord is effective.

The Guatemalan Constitutional Court confirmed it will start hearings, consultations and analyzes on the appeal against the FTA social organizations lodged in a huge march held on February 24.

Public bodies, Guatemalan President Oscar Berger and people’s and social organizations will be summoned for the hearing.

Prensda Latina, 24 Feb 2006

Guatemalans March Against US FTA

Guatemala, Feb 24 (Prensa Latina) Hundreds of union members, farmers, women, indigenous and representatives of other Guatemalan sectors marched in front of the US Embassy Friday chanting “No to the TLC (Spanish for free trade treaty).

“We are here to reject the TLC because it attacks small and mid-size national businesses and the right to health, since cheaper generic medicines would disappear,” one speaker said.

Demonstrators burned a US flag in protest of what is seen as US intrusion in Guatemala, “We don’t want to be a US colony” was another chant, and against the anti-immigrant policy of the US.

A farmer from San Marcos told Prensa Latina this treaty would bring more rural poverty because Guatemalan agricultural produce cannot compete with US-subsidized products.

The marchers walked over three miles from Obelisco, south of the capital, to historic Constitution Court to hand over a formal appeal to stop the agreement from being enforced.