Sexual and Reproductive Rights; An Unsettled Issue in Guatemala

BY EMMA GÓMEZ/ TRANSLATION BY JONATHAN LOTT

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), sexual and reproductive rights are related to the freedom of people to decide about their sexuality and the free exercise of it. Some of these rights include: exercising one’s sexuality, independent of reproduction; freedom from discrimination, pressure, and violence in our sexual lives and decisions; access to sexual (and emotional) education from an early age aimed at the development of the person and the responsible exercise of sexuality in a full, free and informed manner; and access to quality medical services, which preserve one’s health and dignity.

According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), good sexual and reproductive health is a general state of physical, mental and social well-being in all aspects related to the reproductive system. To maintain sexual and reproductive health, people need access to accurate information and a contraceptive method of their choice that is safe, effective, affordable, and acceptable. They must be informed and empowered to protect themselves from sexually transmitted infections. And when they decide to have children, women must be able to receive care from health professionals and they must have access to services that help them have an adequate pregnancy, a safe birth and a healthy baby. Although Guatemala has signed international agreements affirming these rights, they have not been entirely fulfilled.

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Mónica Tojil is a communicator from the Tzolojya Commonwealth who works with women in the communities of Sololá, together with the organization Lagun Artean, from the Basque Country. They run training spaces, workshops, and medical conferences to provide information on the subject.

At the moment, a health diagnosis is being carried out to obtain data on the main pathologies of women in the municipalities of San José Chacayá, Santa Lucía Utatlán and Nahualá. Additionally, in the projects, the fundamental emphasis is women’s rights, indirectly part of human empowerment. However, this is not specifically addressed because it is still a taboo topic.

Civil society organizations have managed to reach women with information on the subject. In the communities, information is provided through the Weaving and Embroidery Schools where, alongside the orientation of weaving techniques and practices, they are also provided with training on their human rights as part of empowerment. However, the issue of sexual rights and reproductive health is not a topic that is addressed continuously or in depth, though there are already a few initiatives in development.

International organizations report that one of the important achievements of indigenous women in recent years at the international, regional, and national level has been the positioning of the sexual and reproductive health and rights of indigenous women as priority issues. These issues reflect many of the inequalities that indigenous women experience, especially due to the close relationship that, along with maternal and neonatal health, they have with other rights.

Regarding the impact they have noticed in addressing the issue, Tojil indicates that, from an individual perspective, sexual and reproductive rights have a positive impact in terms of women’s health, the emotional and economic stability of households, and the recognition of that women’s bodies are also a territory in which each one has the option to decide her motherhood.

With these community interventions, women become owners of their own decisions and destiny. More equal opportunities are generated through the full exercise of their human rights. When they are capable and self-sufficient economically and emotionally, this leads to, for example, making decisions about the number of children they want to have.

To reach rural and indigenous women, training spaces, workshops, and medical conferences are created to provide information on the subject. They build alliances with local authorities to foster greater acceptance of these interventions, as seen with the municipal authorities of San José Chacayá, Santa Lucía Utatlán, and Nahualá.

Challenges

The challenge for promoting sexual and reproductive rights is the taboos which limit the approach in medical sessions and access to contraceptive methods due to lack of knowledge, according to one professional. Women in Guatemala, especially those in rural and indigenous areas, have long faced significant challenges regarding their sexual and reproductive rights. Lack of access to adequate health services, lack of information and education, as well as cultural barriers have limited their ability to make decisions about their own health. In this context, it is essential to advocate for equal access to public health services, as well as for greater investment by the government, in order to ensure that all women, regardless of their geographic location, have the possibility of exercising their health rights—fully and without discrimination.

This situation is particularly serious in developing countries, where problems related to sexual and reproductive health are a leading cause of poor health and death among women and girls of childbearing age. Impoverished women suffer disproportionately from unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions, maternal mortality and disability, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), gender-based violence, and other problems related to pregnancy and childbirth, according to the UNFPA.

In a recent investigation published by Agencia Ocote, from 2013 to 2022, 4,257 women died in Guatemala from some cause related to pregnancy, childbirth, or postpartum complications. On average, that is one every 21 hours. In this report, Deysee Cotom Ixcot, coordinatsor of the National Board of Directors of the Moloj Mayan Women’s Political Association, said that “having access to more education helps women have the professional and economic development and growth that is related to prevent maternal deaths. Because if a woman lives in poverty and is not well fed, how is she going to sustain another life?”

Equitable access to health services

Access to quality health services is essential to ensure that all women, regardless of their geographic location, have the ability to access the health care they need. In rural areas of Guatemala, the lack of adequate health infrastructure and a shortage of trained personnel have been significant barriers for women seeking medical care related to their sexual and reproductive health.

Indigenous women, in particular, have faced additional difficulties in accessing culturally sensitive health services that respect their traditions and values. It is essential that policies and programs be implemented to address these barriers and promote equity in access to health care for all women in Guatemala.

Tojil hopes that more women every day are able to learn and demand their rights, that decision-makers will invest in issues of women’s rights and their empowerment, and that gender equality becomes a central focus in all the projects of the municipalities.