56
49(12) With the death of the women and elders, oral transmitters of the Maya-Achí
culture, their knowledge could not be transmitted to the new generations and, today,
this has produced a cultural vacuum. The orphans did not receive the traditional
education handed down from their ancestors. In turn, the militarization and
repression to which the survivors of the massacre were subjected, particularly the
young men, has caused them to lose their faith in the traditions and knowledge of
their forefathers.238
49(13) The victims could not freely perform the ceremonies and rites of their
Mayan culture, because the military authorities controlled all their activities.239
49(14) The victims were unable to celebrate the leave-taking ritual for their next of
kin who had been executed in the massacre in accordance with their customs. The
absence of these funeral rites caused considerable anguish to the next of kin and the
members of the community, and hindered the mourning process. In 1994, when the
first exhumation was conducted, the victims could bury some of the remains, in
accordance with their religious customs.240
49(15) The military presence and continuous surveillance, repression and threats
caused feelings of terror, paralysis and impotence among the survivors of the
massacre. The victims were forced to live alongside the perpetrators in the PAC and
in the common areas in the town of Rabinal. In turn, they were stigmatized and
accused of perpetrating the events, so they lived in a permanent state of silence.
238
Cf. statement made before notary public by Benjamín Manuel Jerónimo on March 9, 2004, (file on
preliminary objections and merits and reparations, tome III, folios 470 to 488); statement made before
notary public by Eulalio Grave Ramírez on March 9, 2004, (file on preliminary objections and merits and
reparations, tome III, folios 489 to 502); testimony of Narcisa Corazón Jerónimo given before the InterAmerican Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004; report of Augusto Willemsen-Díaz given
before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004; report of Nieves Gómez
Dupuis given before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held on April 24, 2004, and report
of the Historical Clarification Commission, “Guatemala, memoria del silencio,” of June 1999, tome III,
pages 181, 186 and 187, paras. 2887, 2888, 2901(d) and (e), and 2938.
239
Cf. statement made before notary public by Benjamín Manuel Jerónimo on March 9, 2004, (file on
preliminary objections and merits and reparations, tome III, folios 470 to 488); statement made before
notary public by Eulalio Grave Ramírez on March 9, 2004, (file on preliminary objections and merits and
reparations, tome III, folios 489 to 502); testimony of Juan Manuel Jerónimo given before the InterAmerican Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004; report of Augusto Willemsen-Díaz given
before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004, and CEH report, supra
note 238, tome III, pages. 206 and 203, paras. 2937 and 2943.
240
Cf. statement made before notary public by Benjamín Manuel Jerónimo on March 9, 2004, (file on
preliminary objections and merits and reparations, tome III, folios 470 to 488); statement made before
notary public by Eulalio Grave Ramírez on March 9, 2004, (file on preliminary objections and merits and
reparations, tome III, folios 489 to 502); statement made before notary public by José Fernando Moscoso
Möller on March 10, 2004, (file on preliminary objections and merits and reparations, tome III, folios 511
to 518); testimony of Juan Manuel Jerónimo given before the Inter-American Court during the public
hearing held on April 23, 2004; testimony of Buenaventura Manuel Jerónimo given before the InterAmerican Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004; testimony of Narcisa Corazón Jerónimo
given before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004; report of Augusto
Willemsen-Díaz given before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held on April 23, 2004,
and report of Nieves Gómez Dupuis given before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held
on April 24, 2004.
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