The 1985 Constitution of Guatemala does not include specific provisions about gender equality, but Article 4 upholds the principle of equality for all individuals. In 2002, the Penal Code was amended by decree to criminalise discrimination. In many cases, gender equality is contingent on the government’s willingness to apply the recommendations set forth in the national development policy for Guatemalan women. Gender-related legislation is applied in too few cases and strong patriarchal traditions persist in the judicial administration. Nearly one-third of households are headed by women, who earn a lower average wage than their male counterparts.
Guatemalan women have a moderate level of protection under the country’s Family Code. The legal minimum age for marriage is 14 years for women and 16 years for men, but an exception can be made if the woman has a child or is pregnant. The law prohibits marriage for those below 18 years without parental authorisation. The incidence of early marriage is quite high: a 2004 United Nations report estimated that 26 per cent of girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed.
Polygamy is not a common practice in Guatemala.
By law, both parents are obliged to share parental authority, but patriarchal tradition remains strong in Guatemala and women are expected to carry out nearly all domestic chores. Certain legislation restricts married women’s rights: Article 255 of the Civil Code stipulates that “when the husband and wife hold joint parental authority over minors, the husband must represent the minor and administer his or her property”.
There are no reported restrictions on the inheritance rights of Guatemalan women.
The physical integrity of Guatemalan women is not sufficiently protected and violence against women is a serious issue. The incidence of rape, disappearances, torture and murder of women is high and continues to rise, and there is a culture of impunity in Guatemala regarding such crimes. Violence against women is prohibited by law, but is not punishable by a prison sentence. Domestic violence can lead to legal proceedings only if visible traces of the abuse remain on the victim for at least 10 days. Such violence is widespread and it seems to be difficult for women, especially indigenous women, to access the judicial system. There seems to be no social awareness in Guatemala about the gravity of violence against women.
Rapists are exempt from prosecution in Guatemala if they are married to their victim and the Penal Code lays down the criterion that women must be “honest” to be considered victims. It has been reported that the government plans to remove these clauses from the Penal Code, but no information is available to confirm this report. There is currently no legislation in place in Guatemala pertaining to sexual harassment.
There is no evidence to suggest that female genital mutilation is practised in Guatemala, nor does it appear to be a country of concern in relation to missing women.
Guatemalan legislation upholds women’s rights to ownership, but the reality is less straightforward. There are no legal restrictions on women’s access to land, but the percentage of female landowners is extremely low. When land is allotted to a household, it is registered under the name of both spouses; however, when it is allotted to an individual, women benefit in only 10 per cent of cases. The government has established special programmes to improve women’s access to land and correct the current imbalance in favour of men.
There does not appear to be any discrimination against women in Guatemala in regard to access to property other than land; they appear to have equal rights to those of men, whether single, married or divorced.
There is no legal restriction on women’s access to bank loans in Guatemala. Access is, however, limited in practice because women often lack guarantees (such as title deeds). The rural bank grants very few loans to women for agricultural activities and indigenous women are generally unable to obtain loans. The co-operative movement and its micro-credit mechanisms is expected to improve the situation.
The civil liberties of Guatemalan women appear to be respected; there are no reported restrictions on their freedom of movement or freedom of dress.
CCPR (International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) (2001), Consideration of Reports Submitted by State Parties Under Article 40 of the Covenant, Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee, CCPR/CO/72/GTM, UN, New York, NY.
CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) (2002), Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Guatemala, Fifth Periodic Report of States Parties, CEDAW/C/GUA/5, CEDAW, New York, NY.
CEDAW (2004), Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Guatemala, Sixth Periodic Report of States Parties, CEDAW/C/GUA/6, CEDAW, New York, NY.
CEDAW (2006), Concluding Comments of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, CEDAW/C/GUA/CO/6, CEDAW, New York, NY.
DHS (Demographic and Health Surveys) (1998), Guatemala: DHS, 1998/99 - Final Report, Macro International, Calverton, MD, www.measuredhs.com/pubs/pub_details.cfm?ID=275&srchTp=advanced.
ECOSOC (United Nations Economic and Social Council) (2003), Integration of the Human Rights of Women and the Gender Perspective: Violence Against Women, E/CN.4/2003/75/Add.1, UN, New York, NY.
Freedom House (2007), Country Report: Guatemala, Freedom House, Inc., Washington, DC.
Hernandez, R. (2005), Las campesinas y su derecho a la tierra, ediciones La Cuerda, Guatemala, ActionAid, Johannesburg.
INE (National Institute of Statistics) (2002), Censo Nacionales de Habitacion y Poblacion, INE, Guatemala CIty.
JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) (2006), Guatemala: Country Gender Profile, JICA, Tokyo.
Rural Poverty Portal (n.d.), Guatemala Report, ruralpovertyportal.org.
Sierra, M.E. Morales de (2001), Report 4/01*, Case 11.625, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Washington, DC.
