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Labor Rights in Guatemala Aided Little by Trade Deal
Cristina Perez said security guards sometimes locked her in the factory where she worked late into the night.
(Photos By Peter S. Goodman -- The Washington Post)
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"We use many hundreds of factories throughout the world," Dansky said. "At any given time, there are always violations. We try to continue to work with the factories to improve things."
At the port of Quetzal, workers are still reeling from Zamora's killing, and they wonder who might be next. A few weeks after Zamora was shot dead, two men active in a Guatemalan street vendors union were killed.
"All of us as union leaders are under the same risk," said Lázaro Reyes, now leading the port union. "We don't go out. We try not to be seen."
As officials at the U.S. Embassy cited efforts to improve Guatemala's labor rights, one sought to discredit the appearance that a union leader had been assassinated for his work. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the case was "murky," adding that the U.S. government had learned from Guatemala's president or vice president that Zamora had been "a violent man" whose actions triggered complaints by women and police. Pressed for details, the official said she had none.
Mario Castañeda, a Guatemalan prosecutor, said Zamora's murder was probably connected to his job. "Because of his union work, the management of the port may have been involved," he said. No charges have been filed in the killing, and management denies any role.
Recently, Castañeda said, he and a colleague were investigating the Zamora case in the city of Escuintla when a stranger approached them.
"He said we should be careful," Castañeda said, "because people could shoot us."
Special correspondent Robert Perillo contributed to this report.
