Guatemalan IDs to be issued this weekend

LYNN – Guatemalans living in Lynn can obtain a personal identification card issued by the regional consular office on Saturday and Sunday at La Vida, a reading school for Latino immigrants at St. Joseph’s Parish, 29 Green St.Lynn is home to thousands of Guatemalans, many of whom have no identification documents other than a paper birth certificate from their native land.Frances Martinez, director of La Vida and a leader among the city’s Hispanic community, said the doors will open at 3 a.m. on both days. However, the consulate staff will not issue personal identification cards or Guatemalan passports until 8 a.m.”We open the doors early so that people can come inside. The majority of Guatemalans here in Lynn have jobs and they want to get their paperwork done but still get to work,” she said. “This is an important service because many of these people don’t know how to get to Rhode Island where the Guatemalan consulate is located.”Last year, the Guatemalan consulate staff issued plastic photo ID cards or passports to approximately 1,500 Guatemalans in Lynn during a similar event at the parish. An estimated 11,000 Guatemalans live in the city.Martinez said anyone planning to use the ID service over the weekend should bring a paper birth certificate and passport. “My team and my volunteers will be there to assist,” she said.Martinez noted that a child born in the United States to Guatemalan parents is eligible for dual citizenship. “That means the consulate can give them a certificate of Guatemalan citizenship as well,” she said. “The consulate staff has computers that are connected directly to the government in Guatemala and they have all the information on everyone who requests ID.”The fee for a new Guatemalan passport is $65. The personal ID card from the consulate costs $25. The consulate cannot make change so the exact amount must be paid.Guatemalans often present the personal identification card when questioned by police, said Martinez, noting that law enforcement authorities learned the identity of Damian Merida – a Guatemalan beaten near to death by a group of Lynn children earlier this summer – by examining his consulate-issued ID card.The consular staff is scheduled to remain at the parish, near the corner of Union Street, from 8 a.m. to approximately 5 p.m. For more information, call La Vida at 781-586-0193.