Central America and the Caribbean Islands 221

The establishment of a stablegovernment in Guatemala has beena struggle, causing much sufferingalong the way.

Guatemala’s increased stability hasimproved its relationship with itsneighbors, such as the UnitedStates.

MAIN IDEA WHY IT MATTERS NOW

History of GovernmentIn 1821, along with three other Central American states,Guatemala gained independence from Spain. It broke from theother states in 1839 to become the nation we know today.Between 1821 and 1839, peasants in the mountains had stagedrevolts against the government. In 1837, an uneducated farmer,Rafael Carrera (rah•fy•EHL kuh•REHR•uh), led a revolt andemerged as a new leader for Guatemala. In 1854, he took over thepresidency, which he held until his death in 1865.

TERMS & NAMESRafael CarreraJacobo Arbenz

Guzmándepartamento

Tonight, Guatemala City is celebrating. However, thefestivities don’t mark a holiday or a party. They are,instead, signs of the historic action that will take placehere tomorrow.

Guatemala’s leaders will join their opponents insigning a peace agreement that will end a civil warthat killed more than 100,000 Guatemalans over thepast four decades. Finally, hopes for peace havearrived in the country that has suffered through LatinAmerica’s longest-lasting and most deadly civil war.

Place • Many Guatemalans expressed relief and appreciationwhen they heard about the peace agreement. �

GUATEMALA CITY, GUATEMALA, DECEMBER 28, 1996

GuatemalaTodayGuatemalaToday

TAKING NOTES

Colonization

Panama Canal

ProblemsIssues Solutions

Use your chart to take notesabout Central America andthe Caribbean.

From Dictatorial Rule to Reforms After Carreradied, a steady flow of dictators filled Guatemala’spresidency. In 1944, a set of military officersrevolted and won control of the nation. One of these officers, Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán(YAH•koh•boh AHR•bayns gooz•MAHN), sawthe need for social reforms in Guatemala. Whenhe became president in 1951, Guzmán decided todevelop a market economy and raise Guatemala’sstandard of living. Guzmán also redistributed 1.5 million acres of land to 100,000 families. As inMexico, the goal of redistributing land was to give manymore people access to land that they could farm.

U.S. Ties to Guatemala Serious opposition to Guzmán’s redistri-bution program arose in the United States. Both United FruitCompany and the U.S. government owned much land inGuatemala. Guzmán established a policy of giving farmers anyland that was not already being used. Eighty-five percent ofUFCO’s land in Guatemala was unused. Thus, UFCO was atgreat risk of losing that land.

The United States Steps In The United States took action in1954. Accusing Guzmán of supporting Communism—a politicalsystem that the United States believed threatened national safety—the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) supported an invasionof Guatemala’s capital, Guatemala City. A Guatemalan colonel,Carlos Castillo Armas (CAR•lohs kah•STEE•yoh AR•mahs), ledthe attack. A frightened Guzmán quickly gave in. A new govern-ment, backed by the United States, took control of Guatemala.

Civil War Takes Hold After 1954,Guatemala’s government wasruled mainly by military officers.During much of this era, a civilwar raged between governmentforces and rebels who opposed thegovernment. Many people whoexpressed disagreement with gov-ernment policy were murdered.More than 100,000 Guatemalanswere killed or kidnapped before a peace agreement was reached in 1996.

222 CHAPTER 8

Place • Born in 1913, JacoboArbenz Guzmánwas presidentof Guatemalafrom 1951 to1954. �

A. SynthesizingGiven theopposition to thenew governmentafter Guzmán’soverthrow, do youthink it continuedsocial reforms?

Place • Rebelforces inGuatemala have includedthousands ofladinos andMaya people. �

Guatemala’sGovernment TodayGuatemala’s current constitution waswritten in 1985. It established thenation’s government as a democraticrepublic with three branches. Theyare executive, legislative, and judicial.

Government’s Three Branches Apresident heads Guatemala’s execu-tive branch. He or she is elected bythe people every four years and maynot be reelected. The president ap-points a cabinet, or a group of advisers,to carry out the government’s work.

Guatemala’s legislative branch iscalled Congress. It has 113 members who are elected to four-yearterms. Guatemala’s Congress is unicameral, or has one chamber.Members of Congress may be reelected.

Guatemala’s judicial branch has different levels of courts,somewhat like the United States. Unlike U.S. Supreme Courtjustices, whom the President appoints to serve for as long as theychoose, Guatemala’s Supreme Court judges are elected to five-year terms.

State and Local Governments Guatemala is a federal republic,so the national government shares power with state and localgovernments. Governors head Guatemala’s 22 states, calleddepartamentos (deh•pahr•tah•MEHN•taws). The presidentappoints each of the governors. Mayors elected by popular voteoversee the city governments.

Guatemala’s EconomyAt the turn of the century, Guatemala had the largest grossdomestic product (GDP) in Central America. It also had thefastest growing GDP in the region.

Agriculture Guatemala’s dominant industry is agriculture, whichemploys more than half of its work force. The nation’s economylargely relies on the export of agricultural products. Since 1870,coffee has been Guatemala’s leading export. Other agriculturalexports include sugar, a spice called cardamom, and bananas.

Location •Since the 1930s,Guatemala City’sNational Palacehas housed thegovernment’soffices. �

Central America and the Caribbean Islands 223

224 CHAPTER 8

Banana production began in theearly 1900s, when U.S. companies builtbanana plantations in Guatemala. Thesefruit companies also developed railroads,ports, and communication systems inorder to transport the bananas to for-eign markets.

Other Parts of the Economy Guatemalaalso relies on manufacturing to bring inmoney. Food, beverages, and clothingare among its manufactured goods.These goods are sold both withinGuatemala and as exports to othercountries. While other Central Americannations purchase many of Guatemala’smanufactured goods, the United Statespurchases more of Guatemala’s exportsthan any other country does.

In past years, Guatemala’s economyhas boomed with the sale of both textiles and clothing. Also, newnontraditional agricultural products, such as cut flowers and win-ter fruits, are selling quite well on the international market.Tourism is also a strong industry in Guatemala, which is home tomany ancient Maya ruins.

Living in GuatemalaMore than half of Guatemala’s people are Maya. The rest are ladinos. In Guatemala, ladinos are either of mixed Maya andSpanish ancestry, or they are of Maya ancestry but no longerpractice Maya ways or speak Maya languages. Like theancient Maya, most of Guatemala’s Maya today work inagriculture and live in small rural villages. They speakMaya languages, though many of them also speakSpanish. They wear traditional clothing, much ofwhich they weave by hand.

Education Guatemalan children are required toattend school from the age of 7 through 13.However, about one-third do not. Most ofthese children live in rural areas thathave no schools. Only 15 percent ofGuatemalans attend high school.

Human-EnvironmentInteraction •Bananas areproduced inmass quantityon Guatemala’smany bananaplantations. �

B. ClarifyingDoes Guatemalahave a single-product economy?Why or why not?

Place •Standing nearly150 feet high,this Maya temple at Tikal is one ofGuatemala’smajor touristattractions. �

Central America and the Caribbean Islands 225

Write a paragraph explaining three facts about Guatemala that you did not know beforeyou read this section.

SECTION ASSESSMENT

Using Graphics2. Use a table like this one to keep

track of the sequence of events in Guatemala’s history.

Main Ideas3. (a) Why did the United States feel

threatened when JacoboArbenz Guzmán established hispolicy of land redistribution?

(b) After 1954, how did theGuatemalan government treat people who expresseddisagreement with its policies?

(c) What is Guatemala’s leadingexport?

Critical Thinking4. Synthesizing

What is the impact of having a powerful nation, such as theUnited States, be the largest pur-chaser of Guatemala’s exports?

Think About◆ the role of exports in Guatemala’s

economy◆ U.S. interventions in Guatemala

Terms & Names1. Explain the significance of: (a) Rafael Carrera (b) Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán (c) departamento

1837183919441951195419851996

Year Event

Two Sides of Guatemala Daily life in Guatemala is a matter ofextremes. On the one hand, rural Guatemalans have few of thecomforts that North Americans take for granted, such as indoorbathrooms, running water, and electricity. Outside the cities,most homes are very small, and many have dirt floors.

On the other hand, urban Guatemalans live in modern homes,attend schools and universities, and go to theaters, museums, andrestaurants. Many of the cultural influences in the cities, such asmovies, restaurant chains, clothing styles, magazines, cars, andtelevision programs, come from foreign countries. The culturalinfluences in the rural areas are much more local in origin.

Culture • ThisGuatemalanwoman sellsmany traditionalMaya handwovencloths. �