FROM RABINAL TO GUATEMALA'S HIGH RISK COURT: MAYA A'CHI WOMEN'S JOURNEY TO LEGAL JUSTICE

This thesis explores how Indigenous Maya A'chi women fought for and obtained legal justice despite Guatemala's culture of impunity. It centers on the A'chi women case, in which several A'chi women accused former members of the Civil Self-Defense Patrols of sexual violence committed in the 1980s in the municipality of Rabinal, Baja Verapaz. Focusing on the 2022 trial, the thesis addresses the following research questions: How have Maya A'chi women achieved legal justice for the sexual violence they experienced during the internal armed conflict, and what does their case reveal about the broader legal challenges Indigenous women face? What elements made legal justice possible for the A'chi women? And what would it mean for the A'chi women to obtain reparative justice? To answer these questions, the thesis draws on interviews conducted with lawyers Haydeé Valey and Gloria Reyes and psychologist Melissa González from the Popular Law Firm of Rabinal, which represented the A'chi women. The thesis analyzes the women's path to legal justice by evaluating the socioeconomic circumstances and historical backdrop that made them the indiscriminate targets of sexual violence. Furthermore, the thesis argues that the A'chi women achieved legal justice through sustained legal and psychological accompaniment and collective action, but these victories also reveal the limits of legal justice in the absence of fully implemented reparative measures.