Guatemala races to save 60,000 case files of testimony about abuses during armed conflict

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Manuel Botom Uz was just four years old when he and his siblings were attacked by the Guatemalan army in his Indigenous community in Quiche, in northwest Guatemala, in 1982 during the height of the country’s armed conflict.

His siblings were found and released to relatives, but he became one of more than 100 children who disappeared during the conflict from 1960 to 1996. More than 200,000 people were killed and some 45,000 disappeared during the conflict between the army and guerrilla groups. A U.N. truth commission concluded that the Guatemalan military was responsible for most abuses and that the Guatemalan state carried out acts of genocide against Indigenous people.

What little is known about Botom Uz comes from a government program known as the National Reparations Program, which collected testimonies of abuse. But the country is now in a race against time to safeguard the 60,000 case files before the end of the presidency of progressive Bernardo Arévalo in January 2028.

The testimonies, stored in hundreds of large blue plastic boxes organized by department, recount extrajudicial executions, murders, sexual abuse, forced disappearances, and the forced recruitment of men, women, and children in Guatemala during the armed conflict.

Workers trying to save the archive found “damp, piled-up boxes, incomplete, torn files,” recounted Erick Briones, an archive assistant.

It’s part of a UNESCO-funded project that seeks to recover the archive and, in the future, have it declared part of the Memory of the World Program, so that it can be protected and made accessible to everyone who wants to learn about the country’s history.

While Guatemala has brought some perpetrators to justice, the enduring influence of military officials and elites implicated in the period's abuses from that period has hindered efforts. Arévalo has made reparations efforts a priority, but rights groups worry that his eventual successor wouldn’t do the same.

Under the last two presidents, Jimmy Morales and Alejandro Giammattei, the reparations program was largely abandoned, and Giammattei ordered it to be shut down with no provisions to preserve the testimonies contained.

Arévalo has sought to revive efforts to preserve evidence of past abuses from the armed conflict and provide reparations, including launching the first national registry of people who disappeared during that time.

“There was an intention, on the part of the Morales and Giammattei governments, to erase collective memory, to destroy a legacy built over many years based on the testimonies of the victims,” said Elvin Díaz, the presidential commissioner for human rights, who now oversees the archives.

“That is why it is important to recover that memory and the testimonies of the victims, to safeguard them, and for them to become part of the living memory of this country.”

In its initial report, the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, which visited Guatemala last month, stated that the governments of Morales and Giammattei carried out a “systematic policy of dismantling institutions for peace and justice.”

The national reparations program was mainly for humanitarian aid and reparations, but the information could also be used for criminal investigations, Díaz said.

The restoration project also plans to digitize the archive for universal access.

The files will become part of the Reparation and Dignity Plan for the Victims of the Armed Conflict, which Arévalo announced last month.

The plan seeks to integrate and centralize the information from public institutions and civil society organizations to continue with reparations. People who are still missing will be included in a government database.

The case of Botom Uz, however, was finally resolved. Twenty-two years after his disappearance, his remains were exhumed from a clandestine grave and given to his family for burial.

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Archivists work to safeguard testimonies from victims of the internal armed conflict between 1960 and 1996, who sought reparations for the abuses they suffered, in Guatemala City, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Archivists pose for a group photo with boxes containing testimonies from victims of the internal armed conflict between 1960 and 1996, who sought reparations for the abuses they suffered, in Guatemala City, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Archivist assistant Erick Briones is part of a team working to safeguard testimonies from victims of the internal armed conflict between 1960 and 1996, who sought reparations for the abuses they suffered, in Guatemala City, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Archivists work to safeguard testimonies from victims of the internal armed conflict between 1960 and 1996, who sought reparations for the abuses they suffered, in Guatemala City, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

An archivist works to safeguard testimonies from victims of the internal armed conflict between 1960 and 1996, who sought reparations for the abuses they suffered, in Guatemala City, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

NEW DELHI (AP) — Thousands of young protesters were camped on the streets of India’s capital New Delhi on Thursday, defying new restrictions in the latest show of strength for a movement that has become one of the biggest challenges to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

India’s “Cockroach” protests began more than a month ago over alleged leaks in some of the country’s most competitive entrance exams for medical colleges and government jobs. The movement has since expanded beyond exam grievances, drawing professionals and families while channeling broader frustration.

Thursday’s demonstrations at Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site in New Delhi, followed overnight clashes in which police used tear gas and batons to disperse crowds, the second such confrontation this week.

On Monday, thousands of protesters had defied restrictions and marched toward Parliament before police broke up the demonstration with tear gas and batons.

Protesters regrouped by Thursday morning, returning to the protest site despite roadblocks, while authorities suspended Delhi Metro services at 16 stations across central New Delhi in an effort to limit access to the demonstrations.

The issue of exam leaks has become a powerful symbol of frustration for millions of young Indians. Protesters are demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, examination system reforms and compensation for families of students who died by suicide after exam paper leaks.

Facing mounting pressure, Modi addressed the issue publicly for the first time Thursday, announcing fast-track courts to handle examination paper leak cases. Fast-track courts are special courts created to speed up cases in India’s notoriously slow justice system.

“Nothing is more important than the welfare and future of our youth!,” Modi wrote on X.

Leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party, which launched the protest movement, said they would not end the demonstrations until the education minister resigned. Staying true to the movement’s tongue-in-cheek style, its founder, Abhijeet Dipke, responded by posting a meme of Pradhan captioned, “Hi, my name is Nothing.”

The Cockroach movement began as online satire campaign in May and moved to the streets in June through smaller protests across cities. It gained momentum after prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk joined the demonstration and began a hunger strike that has lasted more than three weeks. Police forcibly transferred Wangchuk to a hospital over the weekend.

For many young Indians, the protests have become one of the few visible expressions of dissent in a country where demonstrations against Modi’s government have led to a broader crackdown on activists, opposition figures and public protests.

The movement’s rapid growth beyond student groups reflects wider frustration among young Indians and echoes a broader trend across South Asia, where young people have driven anti-government movements in recent years.

The movement also has gained a following among Indians of all ages over concerns about government accountability, unemployment and economic opportunity.

India has one of the world’s youngest populations, with millions entering a labor market that has struggled to create enough secure, well-paying jobs. Despite years of rapid economic growth, many young people say their prospects have not improved.

As one of the country’s largest voting blocs, India’s youth could also become an increasingly important political force ahead of future elections.

Protesters shout slogans as they carry posters asking for the resignation of India's Minister of Education Dharmendra Pradhan at a protest led by Cockroach Janta Party in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Vipin)

A protestor holds a piece of paper with "Democracy?" written on it during a demonstration demanding educational reforms as part of the Cockroach Janta Party's ongoing protest movement in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Vipin)

Rhiya Ahir, a model, blocks a police van carrying detained protesters during a demonstration demanding educational reforms as part of the Cockroach Janta Party's ongoing protest movement in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Ashish Vaishnav)

A protestor sits on the hood of a police car during a demonstration demanding educational reforms as part of the Cockroach Janta Party's ongoing protest movement in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Vipin)