US must address its responsibilities south of the border

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/us-must-address-its-responsibilities-south-of-the-border-1.1868446-

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Guatemalan illegal immigrants deported from the US wait to be processed on their return to Guatemala City this week.

US must address its responsibilities south of the border
Mary Lawlor
Thu, Jul 17, 2014, 01:00

Since October 2013, 52,000 undocumented children entered the United States from Central America and it is estimated that this will reach 90,000 by year end. While official statements describe this as an “urgent humanitarian crisis” the government’s less than humanitarian response has been to request more power from Congress to fast track the deportation of these unaccompanied minors, many of them girls under 13 and children as young as four or five, back to Central America, including Honduras and Guatemala.

Under the umbrella of the war on drugs, the United States has consistently supported some of the most repressive governments in the region and has at times colluded in human rights abuses. This unquestioning support has helped to create a highly polarised society where the majority of people live in poverty, caught between state indifference and the violence of the drug cartels which has effectively spiralled out of control.

On a recent mission to Guatemala to assess the situation for human rights defenders (HRDs), environmentalist Yuri Melini explained the history of the country. Guatemala never had a war of independence but a negotiated handover of power from Spain so that the 10 families who controlled every aspect of the country’s political and economic life remained in power – as they still do.

Ninety per cent of the country’s wealth is controlled by this powerful oligarchy and their influence extends to manipulating elections so that their candidate always wins. According to Melini, himself the survivor of an assassination attempt linked to his environmental work, with “virtually complete control of national media and close links to the military leadership their power is firmly entrenched.” A similar situation prevails in neighbouring Honduras, where a 2009 coup led to an upsurge in violence.