Jose Mercedez Sotz Cate was Finance Secretary of the Central Municipal Workers Union in Guatamala City. After leaving union headquarters one day, he was seized by heavily armed men and driven to a house where hw was beaten and told to give up his union activites. Three months later, armed men opened fire on Jose as he walked in the street with his son, Jose Esturdo.Jose Mercedez was not hurt but his son, then three years old, was hit by gunfire and lost the use of both legs. For both these attacks, Jose Mercedez blames officially security forces that have repeatedly targeted trade union members.
With medical treatment arranged by Amnesty International and other aid groups, on his sixth birthday, with the aid of braces and a walker. Jose took his first steps in three years.
Photo by Raymond Meeks
Music by Altazor, courtesy of Redwood Records
Written by Tricia Kellison, Chris Linn, and Ray Kristof