Rigoberta Menchu, c. NobelPrize.org
That’s right. In 1992, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to a Guatemalan — Rigoberta Menchu.
Born in 1959, Menchu is an indigenous Guatemalan of the K’iche’ ethnic group. Currently an UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, Menchu won the Nobel Peace Prize for her work promoting indigenous rights in the country as well as publicizing the plight of indigenous peoples during and after the Guatemalan Civil War, which lasted from 1960-1996. In 1998 she was also awarded the Prince of Asturias Award.
Unlike many Guatemalan children today, Menchu was lucky enough to receive her primary school education at several Catholic boarding schools. After leaving school she began her activist work, campaigning against the human rights violations committed by the Guatemalan army during the country’s decades-long civil war.
Since the war ended, Menchu has worked to have members of the Guatemalan military and political establishments tried in Spanish courts; prosecution of the crimes committed is virtually impossible in Guatemala today.
In recent years, she has run for president (2007), served as goodwill ambassador for the 1996 peace accords and become involved in the Mexican pharmaceutical industry with the goal of offering low-cost, generic medicines to those who need them. She is also a member of PeaceJam, whose mission is to inspire young people to create positive change within themselves and their communities, and travels often, speaking at PeaceJam conferences worldwide.
To learn more about Menchu and how she remains involved in the lives of indigenous Guatemalans today, visit her foundation’s website, frmt.org.
