Guatemala: Trade unionist’s home attacked

The ITUC has denounced and strongly condemned the heavily armed attack on the home of trade union leader Carlos Enrique Mancilla Garcia, (...)

Brussels, 9 January 2008: The ITUC has denounced and strongly condemned the heavily armed attack on the home of trade union leader Carlos Enrique Mancilla Garcia, Labour and Disputes Secretary of the CUSG (Confederación de Unidad Sindical de Guatemala), affiliated to the ITUC. The attack took place on 31 December, whist Mancilla and his family were fortunately out for new year’s eve.

Carlos Mancilla had recently been appointed by his confederation to follow up on the murder of Marco Tulio Ramirez Portela, the leader of SITRABI. He is also in charge of reporting fundamental labour rights violations suffered by workers affiliated to the CUSG.

This attack is yet another violation of the Guatemalan Constitution and the fundamental workers’ rights enshrined in the ILO Conventions ratified by the country. Just weeks away from the international conference on impunity organised by the ITUC and its affiliates in Guatemala, the CUSG and CGTG, such attacks and violations of the workers’ most basic rights in Guatemala are a source of great concern and paint a very negative picture of the situation in the country.

In a letter to the Guatemalan authorities (ES - pdf), the ITUC urged President Oscar Berger Perdomo to take every measure to ensure a full investigation into this incident and to bring those responsible to justice, so that this attack is not added to the long list of other violations left unpunished. “The people and workers of Guatemala,” said Guy Ryder, General Secretary of the ITUC, “deserve to be able to live, work and exercise their rights in peace and tranquillity.”


The ITUC represents 168 million workers in 153 countries and territories and has 311 national affiliates.

For more information, please contact the ITUC Press Department on: +32 2 224 0204 or +32 476 621 018