In Guatemala runoff, echoes of past linger

Source: Chicago Tribune

In Guatemala runoff, echoes of past linger
By Oscar Avila | Tribune foreign correspondent
November 3, 2007

SAN JUAN COMALAPA, Guatemala —

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With the wounds of a 36-year civil war still fresh, a controversial retired general's strong push to win Sunday's presidential runoff election has once again ignited a passionate debate over the military's place in Guatemala.

Otto Perez's military background and pledge to use a mano dura, or "strong hand," resonates among citizens fed up with crime and drug-related violence. They see the threat now as coming from carjackers, not communists, and many who backed the army in the 1980s think a military man can restore order once again.

But not in San Juan Comalapa, where three soldiers abducted Carmen Cunez's husband from their bed in 1981. She never saw him again. "We felt the pain. We felt the fear. We don't want another general. The generals ended everything for us," the Mayan woman said.
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But Colom, a liberal businessman making his third presidential bid, has centered his campaign on stopping the mano dura, which promises greater military involvement in police functions.



Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-guatemala_avilanov03,1,5986058.story