The International Book Fair in Guatemala - FILGUA 2008
Guatemala. The International Book Fair in Guatemala- FILGUA 2008 - July the 25th to August the 3rd, in Guatemala has been a resounding success.
Raul Figueroa Sarti, the President of the Organizing Committee of FILGUA 2008, also President of the Editors Guild affiliated to Guatemala's Chamber of Industry, can be very happy today. He and his collaborators managed to organize an unforgettable event of the highest standards in quality content, fluent logistics and accessibility of information. The website they created for FILGUA is one of the best ever seen in Guatemala.
Whatever the expectations for this particular event where, they have been surpassed, thousands of Guatemalans visited the Fair in unprecedented numbers. People of all ages, young and old, students, teachers, writers and readers, rich and poor, housewives and their children, entrepreneurs, intellectuals, businessmen, environmentalists, diplomatic corps, ex- military, military, police, politicians, journalists, office workers, shop assistants, bus drivers, carpenters, plumbers, they all came.
When you walked into the Fair grounds, it was like walking into a different country, a different Guatemala, a Guatemala where everybody can come together, where there are no differences of socioeconomic class, color and ethnicity.
This Fair demonstrated what we can be as a country when we have common goals and a common motivation. It shows us that we Guatemalans have more in common than we think, and that the hunger for culture, books and beauty is ever-present in our souls, and we need it like we need food, clothing, shelter and security.
The success of this event shows that Guatemala is ready for a change, Guatemala is ready to move from being a country of oppression to a country of free expression and freedom of speech. Not from the top down, but from the bottom up. The diversity of so many new Editor Enterprises, the presence of books that where forbidden for a long time all indicates that Guatemala has gone a long way.
CONGRATULATIONS FILGUA 2008!! AND WE ARE ALREADY WAITING FOR FILGUA 2009.
Picture by FILGUA
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