ASSISTING RURAL WOMEN IN POST-CONFLICT GUATEMALA: THE CHALLENGE TO NON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS

by Sally W. Yudelman

Whether they became refugees, were internally displaced, or remained in their communities, rural women, especially indigenous women, have suffered enormously. With husbands and partners killed, farms ravaged and communities abandoned during the military holocaust of the early 1980s, families have disintegrated. The social fabric of rural society has been shredded. Small holder agriculture has become feminized. In Guatemala today, indeed throughout Central America, women make up a growing underclass of impoverished widows, single mothers and female children with almost no right to land and very limited access to credit, new technologies, education, training or formal sector employment (Yudelman 1994). Migration, economic decline, and war have permanently changed the roles of poor women. Twenty-seven percent of households in Guatemala are now headed by women (La Prensa 5/25/96).

THE CHALLENGE OF RETURN
Returning refugees, who for the most part are indigenous people and small producers, face not only the difficulties of reintegration after years of exile, but also the challenge of survival in a country where the economy has been globalized, government policies favor export crops, the role of the Ministry of Agriculture has been greatly diminished, credit for small producers is shrinking, and rural development programs, except those of some NGOs and cooperative federations, are few. In addition, many of the conflict zones to which refugees have returned or will return are almost totally lacking in infrastructure: roads, schools, health posts, potable water systems, electricity, and adequate housing. Even with a peace settlement, the seventy-one percent of Guatemalan families living in extreme poverty are likely to continue to do so for the foreseeable future (La Prensa 5/25/96).

The structure of the economy and the invisibility of women's economic contributions pose the major challenge to rural women. Despite the feminization of small holder agriculture and the increasing number of women in the agricultural wage labor force, women's role in agriculture has long been devalued by the state. Their economic activities remain largely invisible in government census and labor statistics. In part, this is due to the widely held belief that women do not work in agriculture or do so only temporarily for reasons of poverty. One result is that women performing the same agricultural labor as men are paid fifty percent less (Escoto et al. 1993). Women producing for the household are not considered economically active. These factors have rendered women farmers invisible, depriving them of social and legal recognition, protection, and access to resources.

It is clear, however, that rural households in Guatemala today cannot and will not survive without the contributions of women who are present throughout the production cycle and contribute to household income in many ways. Since small scale agriculture (corn and beans) can no longer provide a living, families are forced to develop multiple survival strategies. Recent studies have shown that rural women throughout Central America have increased their productive work time to fourteen to sixteen hours daily in order to survive (Prez 1996).

SUPPORTING RURAL WOMEN

James Sim

As a first step, women's and mixed NGOs should conduct gender training programs for NGOs, government and international agencies, municipal authorities, cooperatives, and small farmer associations. If these entities are to provide meaningful assistance to rural women, their representatives must understand the range of women's economic contributions, especially in agriculture.

NGOs must understand the survival strategies women utilize and the importance of women's possible membership in cooperatives and other rural associations that facilitate access to credit, technical assistance, new technologies, and decision- making power as to labor allocation, wages, and distribution of excess production (Yudelman 1994).

NGOs will need to alleviate poverty and promote rural development. The participation of rural women is critical to sustainable development efforts. The growing number of conflicts highlights the importance of NGOs developing mediation skills to help stop domestic violence and resolve community conflicts before they turn ugly. NGOs must also become advocates: to end impunity, to help enforce the peace accords, and to represent the interests of small producers, especially women heads of household, in a hostile policy environment. At a recent regional conference in Costa Rica on women's access to land, an indigenous Guatemalan woman remarked, "We will not survive this economic model unless we take the political into account."

PROMOTING RURAL DEVELOPMENT
Rural women need economic, not social, programs. Current government policies reward efficiency and competitiveness, but women have had no access to either the services or resources that would enable them to work more efficiently and to become competitive. In Guatemala, less than ten percent of small farms (parcelas) are in the hands of women (Escoto et al. 1993).

In cooperation with the responsible government agencies, NGOs can help facilitate the land access and titling processes for women heads of household, returnees, and other small producers. (The Socioeconomic and Agrarian Accord promises a national land survey and the establishment of a land bank. They can provide bridge credit and technical assistance to start small rural enterprises. They can help improve, increase, and diversify agricultural production and open space for the marketing of agricultural and artisan products. They can help women learn how to lower post-harvest losses and collaborate with them to develop technologies that will diminish the time women spend on domestic chores. They can work with communities to build potable water and sanitation systems. For rural women, access to clean water equals health and time.

Where refugees have returned to existing communities, NGOs should focus their efforts on the entire community. Those which have assisted only refugees within a larger community have learned that targeted aid generates conflict. In particular, they should make an effort to foster collaboration and cooperation between refugee women's organizations and women who remained behind.

NGOs can collaborate with each other and the Defensor¡a de la Mujer to assure that rural women understand their civil and legal rights and the actions they can take if their rights are violated. NGOs can offer literacy training (including economic literacy and marketing skills)--close to fifty percent of rural women are illiterate (FLACSO 1992). NGOs can also train community women to provide primary and reproductive health care.

Lastly, mixed and women's NGOs can strengthen rural women's organizations. Members of refugee women's organizations such as Mama Maqu¡n and Flor Unida developed strong organizational and political skills in exile. The multiple talents of those who have returned should be utilized. Rural women need training in gender and leadership and in mediation and conflict resolution so that they can prevent domestic and community violence. They need project and money management skills, and they need information about the peace process as it unfolds. Such training will help rural women develop an agenda to make their voices heard. Strong and effective organizations can increase their political visibility and their access to economic resources and services.

How much attention rural women will receive, however, is likely to depend on two factors: whether the government raises the funds and exercises the necessary political will to fulfill its commitment to "promote the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women" and guarantee equal opportunities for women in education, housing, health, and work; and competing economic, political, and military interests (Central America Report).

Sally W. Yudelman is a Senior Fellow at the International Center for Research on Women.

REFERENCES

Central America Report. May 9, 1996. Guatemala City, Guatemala: INFORPRESS Centroamericana.
Jorge Escoto, Ana Leticia Aguilar, Julieta Hernández, Manfredo Marroquín. 1993. El Acceso de la Mujer a la Tierra en Guatemala. San José, Costa Rica: Fundación Arias para la Paz y el Progreso Humano. La Prensa. May 25, 1996. Guatemala City, Guatemala: La Prensa. Valdez, Teresa, Enrique Gomtriz, Ana Isabel García. 1992. Mujeres Latinoamericanas en Cifras: Guatemala. Madrid, Spain: Instituto de la Mujer, Ministerio de Asuntos Sociales de España, Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO).

© Copyright 1996 by Juan Carlos Aguilar and Casa de Español Xelajú