Out with the old, in with the new?

Today is an important day, not just because it is the tenth anniversary of September 11th. Of course I have mused over what that day meant for me then and what it means for me now. I remember a brief article I wrote for the local newspaper's high school page about how we all came together and worked to fix things and to never forget. Then I remember watching a documentary on the attacks and how it was all a big conspiracy with my host family in Ecuador on the anniversary of the attacks in 2007. And now here I am in another country and honestly, things going on here have taken more precedence that Guatemalans likely hardly realize that this is a day of remembrance in America.

What's going on here in Guatemala? Read this article for a hint. If you're not here, you probably haven't really heard of it, but there are some pretty big elections going down here. Guatemalans have been going to the polls since this morning to vote for president, congressperson, and mayor. Let's start with president.

There are three front-runners for president. One is a former military general who held onto positions of power in intelligence and the military during Guatemala's 36-year civil war/internal conflict. Another is a doctor with little experience. And the third is an older intellectual/scientist who was originally born in Switzerland. This has made for an interesting race. The next president of Guatemala faces increasing violence, a growing presence of drug gangs, and neglected health and education sectors. According to polls, the former military general will likely win and implement a program of "mano dura" policies (strong hand), which have been attempted in other countries to fight violence but have failed. It is also unclear where the money will come from to increase the police presence and improve security. Guatemala does not have much of a tax base so money for programs is very limited. I really think anyone other than the former military man is a better choice for Guatemala, but it seems unlikely that they will be able to build a strong enough voter base. A majority is needed to win, so a run-off election is likely to take place in November. Honestly, most of the candidates have similar positions on everything and aren't offering any concrete, realistic, practical solutions for Guatemala's many problems, so it seems unlikely that anything really new will be taking place over the next four years, no matter who wins.

As for congressional elections, I really have no idea what is going on. People don't seem to care much about this election. I honestly don't really know what congress does here in Guatemala.

And as for mayor, I have been praying the last nine months that our current mayor will not win again. I have yet to hear anyone say anything good about this mayor. The roads are full of potholes that grow by leaps and bounds. Schools end up paying for their own projects with the support of the parents, with NO support from the municipality. I went to turn in a request for funds from the muni and explained that I would simply be happy with a letter explaining that the muni didn't have funds so that I would have something to turn in with the grant application I was writing, but they kept telling me to come back within 15 days, at which point they would stall even longer. One school has been constructing bathrooms for the past 2 years, waiting for the muni to pull through and pay for the toilets, which they promised at the beginning of the project. Yes, the mayor did pave a road last year from the center of town through three different communities, but that is it. We only have one health center/post. For a big community, we lack things other communities, many of them smaller, have-library, computer lab, functional women's office. Other than the road, he hasn't done anything else in the time I have been here. And it took forever for him to finish the road. Meanwhile, he skims money off the top to build hotels on the coast (as well as one huge hotel here that no one ever stays at, partially because there isn't anything here and partially because it's an expensive Q100 a night). The mayor is never around because he's always passing time away from town. To actually meet with him, you essentially have to be in the right place at the right time. I don't know much about the few men running against him, but I do know that we really can't get much worse. Unfortunately, because his party was paying people to put up signs or paint their houses and was giving out food, it looks like he might win. The mayor in the other community I work with has been the complete opposite: he has managed to extend potable water coverage to almost the entire municipality, he has installed drainage, built projects (sometimes more than one project per school) in 5 of the 6 schools in the municipality, built a new health post, and is always around. He's a fantastic mayor, but he's also super old and is not running. Someone who is currently working under him is running, but he is losing, but a former teacher is apparently winning, so there is a possibility that things will continue to go well in this muni.

I'll keep people updated as to what happens as far as politics goes. The polls closed an hour ago, so what happens now is that one member from each party running in the election meets in a room and they count the votes together. This is a pretty transparent way of doing things, if only there wasn't the opportunity to stuff the ballots before the counting begins.

People have been hanging out all day. The firecrackers will begin as soon as someone is reported the winner. It will shortly be legal to buy alcohol again so the drunks will be out in greater numbers. Luckily, I am safe at home, ready to settle in for the night. Tomorrow should be another interesting day. I suppose I should just be thankful that the noise will be a little more tolerable now that cars won't drive around blasting propaganda.