RTK - Guatemala Youth

Part of the challenge of Right to Know's communication initiative is suiting the message to the culture of the country where it will be delivered, and that's what Dr. Fidel Arévalo is working on in Guatemala. As he explains, it's especially complicated in Guatemala, where the three main ethnic groups all have different levels of knowledge about HIV/AIDS and different cultural restrictions on communication. As the head researcher at the Universidad de San Carlos in Guatemala City, Dr. Arévalo is collaborating with experts at Cornell University and a group of youth researchers to determine young people's needs for HIV information and ways to meet these needs.

Would you say that most young people in Guatemala are well informed about HIV/AIDS?
The average depends on the ethnic group. For the Mayan, who make up more than 50% of the country, it would be very few—I would say 10% or 15%. For the Garifuna, 50% or 60%. The Ladinos, who are mostly in the capital city, are the group that is more educated, so they might have the highest rates of knowledge, maybe 60% or 70%.

Are they interested in learning more about the illness?
Young people are very anxious to have knowledge about HIV/AIDS and sources to go to for information. What they can do to get information on the topic is just scratching the surface. I'm sure they're not getting the information at home.

What approach do you think should RTK take toward HIV/AIDS communication and outreach in Guatemala?
It depends on the region and ethnic group. In the Garifuna, the African/Caribbean group, they have a very early start of sexual relationships, and the culture is quite sexual. On the other hand, the Mayan people are always complaining about the lack of information in their own languages, particularly for women—they refuse to give women any sort of information on HIV/AIDS. On the radio, they might talk about how to prevent HIV/AIDS, but the majority of the time, they won't even say how to use, say, condoms.

If the young people are complaining about the lack of information, what information would they like?
They were asking for workshops to provide information in schools. Teachers are not prepared to transmit these messages, mostly because of knowledge, lack of materials in their languages, and difficulty interpreting the messages within their own culture.

So far, what has been the reaction of the young people working with RTK in Guatemala?
They are very excited. In our first workshop, we brought some HIV-positive young people to share their experiences living with AIDS with our participants. Our young people were so shocked to hear about this—they saw it was real and affected real people of the same age. In fact, although we planned the workshop for two days, we almost took three because they had so many questions.

What have the RTK participants done for the project so far?
The young people have been in the field gathering information on two issues: where other young people go for information on sexuality and HIV, and which medium they would prefer to get this information from. We prepared a very simple, uncomplicated instrument for this. Now they are going to come back to another workshop with their results, and we are going to discuss their experience and any problems they had. Next, we will be starting the process of selecting the media and the message.

Two youth stories
“En mi comunidad sabemos muy poco del SIDA. Algunos de nuestros papas se enojan si preguntamos, una vez insisti tanto que terminaron pegandome. Aqui solo el hombre puede enterarse de esas cosas. Pero yo creo que es necesario que todos estemos informados del virus del SIDA. Mis compañeros y yo tenemos muchas dudas, por eso estoy muy contenta de estar en este proyecto y trabajar por mi comunidad, para que nadie de mis amigos se muera por no saber sobre esta enfermedad.”
—Una joven Quiche

"In my community we know very little about AIDS. Some of our fathers get angry if we ask about it; one time I insisted so much that they ended up hitting me. Here only the men may get information about these things. But I believe that it is necessary that we all be informed about the AIDS virus. My classmates and I have many doubts; consequently, I'm very happy to be participating in this project and working for my community so that none of my friends will die from lack of knowledge about this illness."
— A Quiche (Mayan) youth

"Tengo una familiar que no se si esta infectada, la gente la señala porque dice que esta muy delgada y que seguro tiene SIDA, como aqui la gente miente diciendo que tienen cancer cuando todos saben que es SIDA. Pero el caso es que yo no sabia como ayudarla. Ahora que estoy en este proyecto he aprendido muchas cosas y pude orientarla. Despues de esto siento la necesidad de ayudar a mis amigos, quiero que todos se enteren de lo grave que es esta enfermedad. No es justo que la gente se muera por ignorancia.”
—Una joven izabal

"I have a relative who I don't know is infected or not. People point at her because they say she's very thin and for sure she must have AIDS. It's just like when people here lie, saying they have cancer when everyone knows they have AIDS. The truth is that previously, I didn't know how to help her. Now that I'm in this project, I've learned many things, and I was able to point her in the right direction to get help. After this, I feel the necessity of helping my friends. I want everyone to know about the serious problem that this illness is. It isn't fair that people die out of ignorance."
—An Izabal (Garifuna) youth