Corruption, Impunity and Politics

Four petitions for pre trial hearings have already been lodged against President Morales, following his request to expel the leader of the International Commission against Impunity from Guatemala.

Monday, August 28, 2017

EDITORIAL

In less than a week a series of events took place which have left the country on tenterhooks. The Public Ministry and the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (Cicig) filed a petition for a pre trial hearing against President Morales for alleged illicit electoral financing; Morales declared the Commission of the Cicig, Iván Velásquez, persona non grata, and requested his expulsion from the country.  In response to this, three other requests for preliminary hearings have been filed in the last few hours. 

The case is now in the hands of the Supreme Court, which this week could decide whether to process the request for a preliminary hearing filed by the Public Ministry and the Cicig for " ... the alleged illegal financing of $920 thousand which was not reported by the FCN Nacion to the Supreme Electoral Tribunal."

Regarding the impact of the political crisis in the country, analysts believe that "... there are various scenarios and actions we could see, freezing or reduction of international cooperation funds from donor or cooperating countries, worsening of the business climate and the indicators that measure it, a possible correction of the rating given by rating agencies and a decrease in the flow of foreign investment."

Rafael Briz Méndez, president of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce of Guatemala, told Prensalibre.com that "...One of the great risks, he said, is that Guatemala could be left isolated. In less than two years the country could become high-risk for foreign investors."    

See articles published on Prensalibre.com (in Spanish):

"Jimmy Morales has two new applications for prosecution against him"

"Public Prosecutor and Cicig file suit against Jimmy Morales for illicit electoral financing"

"Political crisis puts Guatemala at risk of isolation"

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More on this topic

The Post-CICIG Era Begins

September 2019

Twelve years after having settled in Guatemala and after multiple struggles for the non-renewal of its mandate, from today the International Commission against Impunity is no longer operating.

In August 2007, the Congress of the Republic approved the creation of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), which arrived in the country with the mission of investigating criminal structures operating within government institutions, work done in association with the Public Prosecutor's Office.

Guatemala: Goodbye, CICIG

September 2018

Arguing that it is time to "strengthen State institutions," President Morales has announced that he will not renew the mandate of the International Commission against Impunity, whose term expires in a year.

The controversial decision by the Guatemalan government, which was announced over the weekend, is based, according to Morales, on the idea that after ten years of work by the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), the time has come to transfer its capabilities over to the State.

Businessmen Take Action Against Corruption

September 2017

Guatemalan businesses have declared persona non grata congressmen who voted for a law which exempted general secretaries of political parties from responsibility in matters relating to illicit electoral financing and increased the possibility of commuting prison sentences with money.

The law, popularly known as the "Corruption Pact", was heavily resisted by Guatemalan society. Pressure from the populace, together with a resolution contrary to the norm from the Constitutional Court, forced Congress to backtrack and archive the law.

Will the President of Guatemala Be Spared?

September 2017

With the decision of Congress not to remove immunity from President Morales, the Public Ministry and the Cicig have been prevented from continuing the investigation into irregular electoral financing.

As expected, the Guatemalan Congress decided to vote against the request for legal action filed by the Public Prosecutor to waive the immunity of Jimmy Morales. This means that the president is spared, at least for now, from being tried in the case of alleged illicit electoral financing.

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