10 they sought asylum. What led them to leave mostly was the death of her sonin-law, the father of two small girls, and it was urgent to free her family. She had never thought to leave Guatemala, and being unable to live there grieves her very much. After what happened, she spent ten years with her husband without mentioning their son, to avoid causing greater damage. The loss of the only son was a tragedy for her husband. He spoke only when necessary, and his grief was so deep that when he lost all hope, he died. The State will never be able to repair the damage it caused, but certain measures may help alleviate her grief, such as: to know the truth about what they did to their son, to do justice, to investigate and find the masterminds and direct perpetrators of the facts, and to establish teaching of human rights at all levels, as well as a specialized human rights university chair. She asked that the Comisión Nacional de Búsqueda de la Niñez Desaparecida be given material and political support to function, and that a genetic data bank be established. She would like her genetic information to be in that bank, so that if her son’s remains are found, they can be identified. This genetic data bank will help those who are searching for their missing children and all persons, but especially those children who have been unprotected, with no support from the Guatemalan authorities. She asked that the search for her son continue until he is found and his remains are delivered to her. Disappearance of Marco Antonio had an economic impact on her family. The search for their son forced all of them to leave their jobs, and therefore they had no income. The financial situation worsened and their savings ran out. Her greatest wish is for things to change in Guatemala, for people to be treated as persons, and that these violations of dignity, of life, and especially of the children should never more take place. b) Testimony of Ana Lucrecia Molina Theissen, the victim’s sister. She was 26 years old when Marco Antonio disappeared. She was a school teacher at a village in San Juan Sacatepéquez, where she worked with “kakchiquel” children. She was also a student at the University of San Carlos, where she was in her third year of the history program, and she was beginning to work as a teaching assistant in the School of Economics and the Philosophy Chair. She had also been a leader of the teachers’ union until 1980, and she was active in the political opposition to the regime. Her plans included obtaining a professors’ degree in History and Social Studies, and working toward a licentiate degree in History. She dreamed of being able to do graduate studies outside Guatemala, and to continue teaching. Since the day of the facts, she lost the will to go on living. Her brother’s disappearance is not something that happened at a given time and place, but rather something that continues to happen inside her every time she comes close to that grief. For ten years she dreamt of her brother’s return, and clung to the idea that he was alive, but at the same time she imagined that he was suffering, and had the conflicting wish that he should no longer be alive. When a person dies naturally or due to an accident, there is a body

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents