From 1960 to 1996 the Guatemalan army, backed by the United States, waged a brutal campaign to eliminate indigenous Maya insurgents. The conflict is classified as genocide by the United Nations.

• 200,000 people were disappeared or killed.
• 50,000 women were victims of violence.
• Of these, almost 90% were of Maya descent.
• Over 640 indigenous villages were destroyed.
• Of 626 massacres documented by the UN truth commission, only 2 have been successfully prosecuted.
• 93% of the atrocities are attributed to the Guatemalan military.

Since the 1996 Peace Accords, former soldiers and officers continue to be active in the notoriously corrupt police and in organized crime. Narco-trafficking and gang activity is rampant. Guatemala City, the capital, has 17 murders a day. In this culture of violence, the women of Guatemala continue to suffer.