ABSTRACT
Many in Uspantan disbelieve that Vicente Menchu would do what some of his associates claim that he did: welcome the EGP to his village. The recollections of family members, town officials, and neighbors coincided with decades of petitions and counterpetitions by Vicente and his antagonists. After the Guerrilla Army of the Poor execution of a García and a Martinez, there is no doubt that several relatives decided to avenge them by collaborating with the army. Vicente and his delegation were not alone in omitting the murder of two ladinos. None of the documents distributed by the left in conjunction with the protests in the capital mentioned the first political killings in Uspantan. Rigoberta Menchu’s father may have found reason to welcome the guerrillas. Peasants are very aware of their lack of power, so they understand the importance of maintaining good relations with whatever faction has the upper hand.
