GUATEMALA: FORMER GUERRILLAS TURN IN THEIR LAST WEAPONS

(3 May 1997) Spanish/Nat

Former Guatemalan guerrillas have turned in their last weapons after 36 years of civil war.

More than three-thousand rebels have been living in eight different camps for three months disarming under terms of a peace agreement signed on December 29.

The government has promised land grants and other benefits for the former rebel fighters.

Former rebel fighters laid down their last weapons late on Friday at the Sacol disarmament camp in the northern Guatemalan jungle.

The 200 ex-guerrillas who left the camp were the last to demobilise.

Braving the jungle heat, the men and women of Sacol, lined up to receive certificates from U-N observers.

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
'At the moment we don't have a home, so in the meantime we'll go to shelters and from there we'll see how we can be trained so we can integrate economically into society.'
SUPER CAPTION: Pedro Ruiz, former rebel fighter

More than three-thousand rebels have been living in eight different camps for three months, disarming under terms of the peace agreement signed on December 29 between the government and the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unit.

The treaty put an end to 36 years of civil war - the longest in Latin American history.

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
'To save and build peace must be done through a national consensus of several sectors of society in terms of fulfilling the peace accords.'
The guerrillas pledged to turn in their weapons while the army promised to cut down its ranks by one-third, give up its police role and close down several rural bases.
SUPERCAPTION: Commander Pablo Monsanto URNG

The government has promised to ease the rebels' re-integration into civilian society by giving land grants, education and financial aid for cooperative business projects.

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish),
'We must thank the three thousand former fighters from the URNG for this success because they honour their commitment to incorporate into legal life. We must also thank the government for fulfilling its commitments and also the constant support to carry out events like that of today.'
SUPERCAPTION: Jean Arnault, Director United Nations Mission for Guatemala

Sceptics have questioned whether the former rebels have turned in all their weapons.

But U-N observers contend that the U-R-N-G has not only given up their weapons but also have revealed caches of weapons and explosives that will be turned over.

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