Guatemalan groups vow to continue protests
against FTA
Guatemalan grassroots organizations said on
Tuesday that they will not give up protests against the Central
America-United States Free Trade Agreement (FTA), ratified last week by
the parliament.
"We are not going to change our position" and the demands during the
dialogue that was to be opened Tuesday between social group leaders and
the government, said Daniel Pascual, leader of the National Coordination
of Peasant Organizations, according to reports from Guatemala City.
He noted that the protests against the FTA will continue over the coming
days, and will not cease unless President Oscar Berger nullify the
ratification of the commercial agreement by the Congress.
"The protests against the FTA will continue nationwide for as long as
necessary until the president vetoes it. This is the only thing we could
accept in the negotiations," Pascual added.
"The compensations offered by the government are not sufficient to solve
the problems of inequality and injustice in the country, "which will
worsen after the implementation of the FTA, he said.
In order to put an end to the protests in recent days, the government
and the leaders of the social groups agreed Monday evening that they
will start a dialogue process mediated by metropolitan archbishop,
cardinal Rodolfo Quezada.
The dialogue scheduled for Tuesday at the Archbishop Palace will be
aimed at defining a discussion agenda to reach a solution to end the
protests, in which some 50 people were wounded and 16 arrested.
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