To the memory of a guatemalan catholic Bishop of Quiché. El Quiché saw increased levels of violence in the conflict between the Army and various rebel guerrilla factions. The worst violence and human rights abuses were seen in the department of El Quiché. Hundreds of Roman Catholic catechists and heads of Christian communities, most of who were of Maya origin, were brutally murdered. Gerardi was highly outspoken against the military and demanded that they stop the violence against his people.