Military archives spanning nearly four decades of civil war in Guatemala will be opened to the public, the country's President Alvaro Colom has announced. Some 250,000 civilians were killed or disappeared in the 36-year conflict, which was ended in 1996 by a UN-sponsored peace agreement. Mr Colom made Monday's announcement from the balcony of the National Palace overlooking Guatemala's Central Square. Demonstrators had gathered from all over the country to hear the news.
For more information on Guatemala, see:
National Public Radio, Guatemala: Unearthing the Future. Available at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7086245
The Historical Clarification Commission (CEH) was established on June 23, 1994, as part of peace agreements between the Guatemalan government and the National Guatemalan Revolutionary Unit (URNG), to investigate human rights violations in the 36-year armed conflict in this country. The commission's final report, entitled: Memory of Silence, is available at:
Spanish: http://shr.aaas.org/guatemala/ceh/mds/spanish/
English: http://shr.aaas.org/guatemala/ceh/report/english/toc.html
The National Security Archives, Guatemalan Police Archives: http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB170/index.htm
Sterling Memorial Library's Microform Collections, Guatemala: http://www.library.yale.edu/latinamerica/guatemala.html
WorldLII collection of legal resources from the Republic of Guatemala: http://www.worldlii.org/catalog/2291.html
Country profile from the CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gt.html
News sources:
* Prensa Libre: http://www.prensalibre.com/
* Siglo Veintiuno/ Siglo News: http://www.sigloxxi.com/