The creation and conduct of the Guatemalan Commission for Historical Clarification

As in other Latin American nations, Guatemala established a truth commission as a part of a negotiated transition from war to peace. The establishment of a particular truth commission arises out of the unique circumstances of that nation’s conflict and its negotiated resolution. As with other examples of truth commissions, the Guatemalan experience demonstrates the dilemmas of answering the demands for accountability, within the precarious context of a negotiated transition. Once established, a truth commission is subjected to the struggles within sectors of society striving to control the truth commission, and make it respond to certain interests. These struggles influence the practices, powers, and potential of the truth commissions.This article analyses the context in which the Guatemalan Commission for Historical Clarification emerged, the conditions in which it operated, and the potential consequences of the truth-seeking process. I argue that the Guatemalan truth commission became a site of struggle in which battles concerning impunity versus accountability occurred. This article first traces the phenomenon of truth commissions in Latin America, and locates the Guatemalan case within this regional context. Next, the negotiations that led to the formation of the truth commission are examined, in order to highlight the particular powers and interests at stake. Finally, I describe the operations of the Guatemalan truth commission in practice (1997-1999), and discuss the ways in which the commission developed a life of its own, despite the politics of its birth.