Rigoberta Menchú was born in 1959 in the Indian settlement of Chimel, in Guatemala. After suffering through the torture and assassination of various members of her family by the armed forces, she began her non-violent struggle in defence of human rights and the Mayan civilisation. Her permanent commitment to the most underprivileged forced her to seek exile in Mexico in 1981, after being threatened and persecuted on numerous occasions. Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992, Menchú takes part in her country´s pacification process, and she has headed diverse United Nations initiatives in defence of the indigenous populations of Latin America.