Wounded Feet

Tues. 13/1/15- It is 5:08 in the morning and we have decided to this. We are planning to travel to Guatemala City this morning for an appointment at the presidential palace tomorrow to address the rights of the Garifuna People to have a representative in CODISRA (Comisión Presidencial contral la Discriminación y el Racismo). CODISRA is the presidential commission that overlooks issues regarding discrimination and racism in Guatemala for the Indigenous People. On the 15th January 2015, the actual president of Guatemala supposedly will choose five commissioners for this particular institution. According to the peace treaty of 1996, one of the commissioners should be a Garifuna.

Wed. 14/1/5- It is 8:15 in the morning and I have been home since seven thinking about this moment. The message that was revealed to us this morning came by way of this concept “Wounded Feet”.

Before we continue, we would like to give thanks and praise in advance to the Most High along with our Ancestors for their intervention in our affairs. 

Our yearning and praying for the intervention of our Ancestors in our affairs at this moment is profound. The yearning and praying is about the healing of our Wounded Feet.

From our point of view; our feet is wounded and our journey is far from over. We are aware that our feet have been wounded and we are praying for their healing so we can continue our journey.

A meeting materialized at the presidential palace yesterday sometime after three in the evening with the participation of a team from the institution of CODISRA in the company of one of the advisers of the actual president. The main “menu” was domestic violence case of Carlos Caballeros.

Maria Trinidad Gutierrez Lopez who is the actual coordinator of CODISRA mentioned at one point the televised event that took place in August 2013. It was a point that caught our attention; it was when the actual president asked Carlos Caballeros about the feelings of the Garifuna People in Guatemala regarding his election as the commissioner that will represent the Garifuna People. We said then and we were able to repeat it yesterday, that we were glad that there is a Garifuna again in that position however we did not agree with the process of election.

Today we would like to inform the actual president of Guatemala that we are walking with wounded feet.

Our feet are wounded because the Garifuna Women are the foundation of our Nation. They have managed to keep the struggle alive for more than 217 years. What took place on the 6th January 2015 does hurt and it is pain that hurts every Garifuna in our Nation.

What the Garifuna community of Guatemala is “feeling” is a pain and what we are watching is not pleasing to the eyes of the Garifuna People of the past present and future.

Au- Le

Lúbara Huya