Removing the veil

Upon arrival in Guatemala, I thought I had some idea of what I was going to see and experience due to my past experiences in Costa Rica. However, the experience I had in Guatemala was much different. It was not health clinics, but instead, this experience relied on my ability to make connections and have conversations. Two things I enjoy doing and rely on for continuing this blog. My first blog was about my mother. Her strength and hope that resurrected her from a label of cancer to a mother, daughter, and wife once again. It was a story of survival. This story is somewhat similar.

Pamela Liquez works for Centro Evangélico de Estudios Pastorales Centroamérica or CEDEPCA for short. CEDEPCA is a Protestant organization whose mission is to educate others to transform lives and offer healing space and listeners for women, men, and children all over Central America. Pamela works to advocate for women and young girls. She presented to my class in a quaint room overlooking a community in Guatemala. The windows were open and you could hear the noise of people walking through the streets and birds chirping. Her presentation stood out to me, hence why I believe she deserved for the world to hear her speak and not just limited to that room.

“Guatemala is a very male dominant country,” Pamela stated.

She told us having a women’s ministry had brought light into women’s lives and made them realize that maybe some situations they were in they did not have to be in. Women have voices too. 119 women report violence in Guatemala every single day. Even in healthcare inequalities show and the lack of adequate education and resources for women's health lead to a higher risk of pregnancy complications and thus, a higher infant mortality rate. The average level of education for women is 1st grade. Inequality is not just limited to women, but young girls too. 2/10 children between the ages of 7-12 are enrolled in school, 4/10 children between the ages of 12-16 are enrolled in junior high and only 2/10 high schools are enrolled in high school. A lot of reasons behind these statistics are just due to the way the country runs- on its commerce. A lot of children are exposed to the markets and farming or other types of labor early on so that they can start providing for their families. Work is a higher priority than school because working whenever possible will grant the immediate financial relief needed. In 2019 there were 57,801 pregnancies recorded for young girls ages 10-19. Pamela said this is a result of two big problems. One, lack of sexual education in schools and two, sexual assault. Women of all ages face sexual assault in Guatemala, as Pamela noted earlier it is a very male-dominant country. This is exactly what CEDEPCA and Pamela are trying to combat.

They are trying to reinstate that woman has a voice of their own.

Pamela says that the woman’s ministry’s mission is that women will live free of violence. To make these steps the ministry helps women develop critical thinking so that deconstruction of the patriarchy can happen and they can break the inequality of sexes together. The choice to be involved in such a project may be looked down on by others in the country, but this does not stop Pamela. With such a warm and welcoming presence she offered the class education about what she sees daily living in Guatemala. Pamela deserves to be a muse. She is young, she is fearless and after her presentation on the women's ministry, I had the chance to talk to her some more while we ate lunch. She expressed her interests, that being of traveling, her dog, and of course helping others. I asked why she got involved in the first place and she told me because someone always has to, so why not her. This happens everywhere, which is the upsetting thing. Sexual violence and inequality are not limited to the country of Guatemala. This type of behavior happens in many other Central American countries and even some in Europe and Asia. We can find cases similar in the United States too. Pamela felt she needed to do something about it any way she could, and wherever she was. I asked her why:

“What's the most difficult part of your job?”

Pamela responded, “Hearing all the cases of abuse and violence. It is unimaginable and then the first time someone tells you what happened to them and it's just awful you realize how real it can all be.” She shared a story, one of the first she's ever heard, about a young girl that was 9 years old who stopped menstruating. She was confused and she did not know that much about menstruating in the first place so she did not think much of it right away. It turned out she was raped by her uncle and she was pregnant.

When I heard this I did not even know what to think. It was hard to wrap my mind around it, I didn't even know how to respond. My heart sank into my stomach and I think Pamela could tell. She told me that feeling is exactly what made her motivated to start making a change. She said she still has that feeling sometimes when talking to the woman. Maybe she will not ever relate to them, but being there for them and letting them know how powerful they are and how much support they have can move mountains.

“What is your favorite thing about your work?”

Pamela responded, “The best is seeing the woman become aware and then they transform. They will begin to talk about their dreams again, which were never shared upon the first arrival. They begin talking about going back to school, or work, or even getting involved with the ministry themselves.” Pamela called this “Removing the veil” as a metaphor of stripping the darkness that shadowed their perspectives for such a long time. She said, “being able to change their mentality and seeing it work after time is such a beautiful thing.” It reinstates why she does what she does- because it works and it helps. 

Pamela is an inspiration- my first one in Guatemala among many others that followed. She stuck in my head though because she was right. It is not just limited to Guatemala. Sexual assault and abuse happen everywhere and she was also right when she said that you can no just sit back with your arms crossed. Maybe you may not be affected by sexual assault or abuse, maybe you do not even know someone who is. The fact of the matter, though, is that there are human lives similar to your own that face that, sometimes daily. If you can use your voice, do it. Use if for all the people who feel they have none. Just like Pamela. 

“What's one thing you would tell people knowing what you know?”

Learn more about domestic and sexual abuse in Guatemala: