'Life Is Worth Nothing in Guatemala' or is it?

Lianne Milton has a photo essay at Newsweek that has a good number of photos on everyday violence and life in Guatemala. However, the title of the piece - 'Life Is Worth Nothing in Guatemala' is offensive unless, that is, you mean the exact opposite. According to the writer, it is apparently common to say En Guatemala, la vida no vale nada. I can't say that I had ever heard the phrase.

However, it sure doesn't reflect the reality of the Guatemalan people. I can't help but compare Milton's photos and commentary with those of James Rodriguez whose latest essay is on exhuming and reburying victims of the armed conflict in Alta Verapaz. People have worked so hard to find the disappeared and to provide them with a proper burial. It just seems the opposite of life is worth nothing. (I know that's not who she was talking about.) I don't know, maybe I am thinking too much into this.

Violence 
Guatemala's murder rate peaked in 2009 at 46 per 100,000 before decreasing in 2010 (41), 2011 (39), and 2012 (34). According to a recent study, Guatemala City even dropped out of the ranking of The 50 Most Deadly Cities in the World. Unfortunately, Guatemala looks poised to finish 2013 at around 35 per 100,000.

Impunity
Milton also cites a Human Rights Watch report that says that 98 percent of crimes in the country go unpunished. While we don't know the denominator (how many crimes are actually committed), the Public Prosecutor's Office and the CICIG say that impunity has improved quite significantly over the last six years. Impunity now stands at 70 percent or so.

Corruption
I'm still waiting for the hatchet to come down on Alvaro Colom. El Periodico had said that his legacy to Guatemala was corruption. I argued instead that he was leaving the country in better shape than he had found it and that his administration was less corrupt than those of Portillo and Berger. Transparency International just released the results of its Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) and Guatemala doesn't look to good. On a 0 - 100 scale, with 100 close to no corruption, Guatemala scored 29 which is down from the 33 of 2012.

I know - let's give the president another award.