A Manchester woman's fight for truth and justice

Web link to Guatemalan police archive leads to powerful film which premieres in Manchester next week
Guatemala: a beautiful country with a terrible 20th century history

A Manchester woman's fight for truth and justice


In 2008, sat in her adopted Manchester home, Lucia Cuevas came across a news item on the internet about the discovery of a forgotten police archive in her home country of Guatemala. It was discovery that would lead her back there to discover the truth about the murder of her brother in 1984.

Her film of that journey, The Echo of the Pain of the Many, documents not just one man's disappearance and murder by government forces, but brings to light some of the history of the United State's involvement in Latin America for over 36 years and the consequences for the people of Guatemala.

Guatemala is one of the poorest countries in Latin America. In the film Noam Chomsky explains how a fledgling democratic government in the ten years from 1944-54 tried to bring in basic human rights in education and labour, reforms which were labelled as 'Communist' by the US. The Eisenhower government supplied covert aid to the military to destabilise and overturn the elected government. Decades of repression followed.

Lucia and her family were part of a radical opposition to the longstanding military regime. As a student in the 1980s, alongside her brother, she opposed the civil war that had raged in the country, and the consequent illegal kidnapping, torture and murder of opponents to the regime. It is believed that over 150,000 people died and 45,000 people were 'disappeared.'

The discovery of 7 million documents in the police archive meant for Lucia that "it was a light of hope", to find out who was responsible for her brother's death but also " a chance to gather together pieces of a shattered past. Not just to relive my pain but the echo of the pain of the many." The documents proved that the campaign of kidnappings, torture and murder was orchestrated by the then government.

Guatemala today is still a very violent society but now has a democratic government, although the latest elected President is a retired General. Lucia returned home to make this film with her partner, Fred, and did so in a dsicreet way so as to ensure their safety. In the film she shows how the latest documents have led to the uncovering of mass graves, and finally to the arrest and successful prosecution of some of the military responsible for atrocities.

In the documents Lucia found out that her brother had been killed by the military after three months, even though the state been telling them for many years that he was still alive years later. As Lucia says, this is a familiar story for many people:

Mine is not just a personal tragedy, but a national tragedy for the hopes of Guatemala in this period.

In the film there are many harrowing interviews with the families of the 'disappeared'. It also documents the slaughter that took place in the village against the Mayan indigenous people, with hocking interviews with survivors coupled with film footage of the destruction of their villages and way of life.

Lucia's film ends on a positive note: in 2009 the first trials of the military prosecuted for human rights abuses started and led to the imprisonment of some of those guilty. In 2011 the President of Guatemala apologised to the families of the 'disappeared' and asked for forgiveness. Lucia now has evidence of who abducted and killed her brother and can take the case forward.

Her film has been premiered in Guatemala, and has had a very positive result. She says:

Many people came to the screenings, particularly young people who wanted to know what had happened during those times. I hope this film will help people deal with our past, to liberate our memory of that time and lead to a recovery of hope for us all.

The UK premiere of The Echo of Pain of the Many will be on Saturday 19 May at the WFA Media and Cultural Centre, 9 Lucy St, Manchester M15 4BX at 7. 30pm. Further information is available from armadillo.productions@yahoo.co.uk

Bernadette Hyland
Bernadette Hyland
