Civilians Celebrate Coup Announcement In Guatemala City
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A group of civilians celebrate as they pose with newspapers announcing a coup d'état led by General Efraín Ríos Montt in downtown Guatemala City, Guatemala, March 23, 1982. In the first days of the coup, Ríos Montt and his military junta received support from many sectors of society who welcomed the shift in power after living through the brutal repression of the previous Lucas García regime. However, after this brief period the repression escalated in both urban and rural areas, with an increase in state-sanctioned massacres of civilians. Ríos Montt has since been indicted and tried for genocide and crimes against humanity against the country's Maya Ixil population with the legal proceedings extending until his death on April 1, 2018.