E/CN.4/2005/18/Add.2 page 11 23. The Special Rapporteur noted that, despite the tasks allocated to these institutions, combating racism and racial discrimination is not yet a national priority. Further efforts are needed to encourage political action and solutions that, in conjunction with legal measures, would strengthen the present system of protection. This would make it possible to avoid purely theoretical reforms and, instead, to ensure the effectiveness of existing legislation and improve the procedures for remedies, which are currently considered of little practical use. C. Analysis and evaluation of the political and legal strategy and the institutional framework 24. The Spanish Conquest and the subsequent period of colonization, which began in Guatemala in 1524, left the country with a legacy of political, economic and social stratification that basically persists to this day. Such stratification, which is based on racial prejudice, kept indigenous groups at the bottom of the social ladder and reduced Africans to slavery. The indigenous groups were considered as backward and as obstacles to development, and were exterminated and marginalized, while their culture was devalued and treated as a form of folklore. This situation illustrates the malaise affecting Guatemalans’ sense of identity, whereby the thriving cultural practices and expressions of indigenous people are downplayed even as the architectural and archaeological legacy of indigenous people, particularly the Maya, is put on display for the benefit of Guatemala’s image abroad. The achievement of independence and the construction of a modern State have propagated, not to say exacerbated, this legacy of discrimination and marginalization. In this connection, the Commission for Historical Clarification, which was set up to shed light on human rights violations committed during the armed conflict, has stressed that one of the causes of the armed conflict was “the creation of an authoritarian State which excluded the majority of the population, was racist in its precepts and practices, and served to protect the interests of the privileged minority”.9 25. Despite official statements recognizing multiculturalism, Guatemala clearly and overwhelmingly gives preference to its Hispanic identity. The country’s official language is still Spanish, and the 24 other national languages are for domestic use only. A large proportion of the population - the Mayan population alone accounts for 43 per cent of it - is therefore marginalized from the viewpoint of the State, the administration, the judiciary and the economy. Despite the progress made in reforming the justice system, the Special Rapporteur’s attention was drawn to the fact that, out of a total of 650 judges, only 98, or 15.08 per cent, speak indigenous languages.10 26. Despite the deep historical roots of racial discrimination, its pervasiveness in contemporary society and its clear daily manifestations, the Special Rapporteur considers that there is no clear recognition of this reality by the political authorities and the dominant classes. Although some government representatives recognize it in private, the official line is that discrimination is essentially of a social and economic nature. The failure to recognize the reality of racial discrimination and its pervasiveness throughout society is thus a major initial obstacle to efforts to confront this problem directly and objectively and find a lasting solution.