Representatives of three Guatemala Radio Project partner organizations were in Washington, D.C. from March 7–11 as part of the Project’s effort to promote changes to Guatemala’s telecommunications law. On March 7, Antonio Barrios, President of Consejo Guatemalteco de Comunicacion Comunitaria (CGCC), Cesar Gomez, representative of Asociacion de Radios Comunitarias de Guatemala (ARCG), and Leslie Larissa Escobar Ruano, Director of La No que No radio station in San Marcos, San Marcos, met with Massachusetts Congressman James McGovern to gain support for the legalization of community radio in Guatemala.
As a result of the meeting, McGovern agreed to write a letter on the associations’ behalf to the president of Guatemala urging him to stop the government’s harassment of community radio, and to expedite the passage of stalled legislation that will legalize the medium. On March 8, the visiting representatives testified before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and also gave an interview that will be broadcast on Voice of America radio over the weekend (schedule unavailable at press time). While in the United States, the partner representatives seek to form alliances with as many US-based radio stations as possible to gain support for their cause.
Weekly Indigenous News readers can contribute directly to Cultural Survival’s Guatemala Radio Project by donating the following new or gently used items: PC laptops in working condition, small reporter-style tape recorders, and Sony mini-disk recorders. Items should be sent to:
Cultural Survival
Attn: Mark Camp
215 Prospect St.
Cambridge, MA 02139
USA
Items should arrive at Cultural Survival prior to March 15 so that the visiting representatives can carry the items on the airplane and save shipping costs. Equipment donations are tax deductible.
