Guatemala: Apathetic Youth and People-Power?

Credit: 

Jorge Dan Lopez/Reuters

We’ve heard of the Arab Spring.  We’ve watched on as mainstream news outlets have relentlessly reported on the impact of actions by the general public have had on the governing social and political systems.  We’ve been witness to countless outbreaks of violence, unrest, and humanitarian crises, which have produced graphic and obscene images that became a viral presentation of a system that is failing.

Today we are watching as refugees from war-torn and conflicted countries, with failed insurgencies, are attempting to escape their homelands, seeking a less tormented place to temporarily call “home”.  We are bombarded with reports and images of train stations and various forms of public transport overflowing with individuals from all backgrounds, seeking safety and compassion.

However, not many have heard of the Guatemalan Spring, which began in April of this year.  Very little, if any, coverage has been devoted to this political uprising in a country known for a history of civil war, military dictatorship, and, more recently, narco-fuelled gang violence.  There had been little hope of change.  Until now.  Guatemala is now undergoing a modern mass protest movement, starting with one political figurehead at a time.

Firstly, it feels right to explain that this Guatemalan Spring is incomparable to the Arab Spring.  Guatemala is already a democracy, with Molina being a democratically elected President.  “It's certainly important in Guatemala and it marks the resurgence of a civil society protesting,” Arturo Wallace says.  “These are the biggest protests in the last 30 years in Guatemala. So it is a big thing. It is a reawakening of the civic spirit. ... There are certain similar aspects but I think it would be too ambitious to expect that this might result in huge political change within the region.”

This is the continuation of an important series of historic events, and people should be taking note.  Like usual, major news corporations and news outlets will not take notice of or report the peaceful demonstrations and protests against the corruption of influential politicians until they turn violent, because peaceful outbreaks of dissatisfaction and disillusionment with a government that supports the audacious theft of millions of dollars of public money does not match the narrative and stereotype that is hyped and spread so regularly.

These events were triggered by fed-up youth, enraged with the divisive and elitist nature of their political system, through the use of social-media (for example, Twitter hashtag #renunciaya, translating roughly as “resign already”), and old-fashioned protests to educate and raise awareness about the nature government.  As a recent UN report bluntly stated, “all of Guatemala’s social indicators reflect… widespread poverty and severe inequality”.  When this is the case, is it any surprise the Guatemalan population is malcontent?

And people will quickly claim that the 18-24 group are apathetic and uninterested in politics. This part of the population in Guatemala are proving this negative media-hyped stereotype wrong. They are standing for what they believe in and making their voices heard.  The youth of Guatemala are the reason political change has been commenced, and they are the reason their society can adapt and grow according to the needs of the country’s population, as opposed to the corrupt needs and choices of the political elite. 

But do not be fooled into thinking that it is only students and young people engaging in this revolutionary movement.  In April, during phase 1 of the protests, thousands of people from across various cities gathered together in the capital, Guatemala City, to march and demand the end to corruption, and the resignation of President Otto Pérez Molina and Vice President Roxana Baldetti.  Since then, the protests have been weekly, and the number involved has grown exponentially.  The protests have seen communities united to demand sweeping reforms, and in the space of a few short months, President Otto Pérez Molina has resigned, after having his immunity revoked and an arrest warrant issued.  Vice President Roxana Baldetti is one amongst dozens jailed, and the various protests and campaigns have shed light on the deep-rooted and widespread organised crime and bribery in party politics and election campaigns.  Decades of uncontrolled liberties and political status quo appear to be reaching an end.

The Guatemalan Spring is the perfect modern example of people-power, driving historical, social, and political change in a positively influential direction.  Those of us in the West should be sitting-up and taking notice.  This is a mass change, and who knows the knock-on effects this revolution may have globally. 

So what can we learn from these events?  Firstly, that the youth are not as apathetic as mainstream media of any form would so like us all to believe.  Young people are actively engaged and aware of social issues, and are keenly seeking to make a positive difference to the world we live in.  Secondly, that social media is not redundant in political activism, but instead is a source of networking, for making connections to aid in attempts to influence political issues.  And thirdly, that people have more power than we are led to believe.  We can influence anything around us if we collectively put our minds to something, and change can be achieved.