Guatemala: The Italian Embassy Celebrates the 30th Anniversary of the Peace Accords

Guatemala: The Italian Embassy Celebrates the 30th Anniversary of the Peace Accords

(ANSA) - CITTÀ DEL GUATEMALA, 16 OTT - About 200 people—including politicians, academics, journalists, representatives of international organizations, diplomats, and college students—participated today at Rafael Landívar University in Guatemala City in a roundtable discussion marking the 30th anniversary of the peace accords that ended the civil war in Guatemala (1960–1996). The event, titled “Peace Remains Our Task: Memory, Reconciliation, and Commitment Thirty Years After the Peace Accords,” was organized in collaboration with the Italian Embassy in Guatemala and the Community of Sant’Egidio. Among the participants were Raquel Zelaya, a well-known economist, former member of the government negotiating commission, and signatory to the agreements; retired General Julio Balconi, who served as Minister of Defense at the time; and Sandino Asturias, a political scientist and son of the negotiator for the armed guerrilla group (URNG). The Italian Ambassador to Guatemala, Gabriele Meucci, opened the proceedings alongside the university’s Secretary General, Andrade-Abularach, emphasizing the importance of the Italian Constitution’s rejection of war. The highlight of the day was the speech by Roberto Bonini, who, on behalf of the Community of Sant’Egidio, participated directly in the most confidential phase of the negotiations that led to the signing of the peace agreements between the military government and the armed guerrilla group. His personal experience inspired the book *Dare una mano alla pace* (*Lending a Hand to Peace*), in which Bonini recounts the Community of Sant’Egidio’s role in facilitating direct dialogue between the warring parties through secret meetings, the first of which took place in Rome at a convent. Read article...