Guatemala - Corruption and Resistance

We are in Guatemala at a difficult juncture in which citizens have chosen to protest so that both the president, Giammattei, and the attorney general Consuelo Porras resign their positions due to their possible involvement in acts of corruption.

For a long time, the three powers (Legislative, Executive, and Judicial) in the country have been co-opted, but in the last two governments, these sectors have been strengthened by placing people allied with corruption in key positions. Porras is a key player in obstructing the law and protecting corrupt allies.

The Chief of the Special Prosecutor’s Office against Impunity (FECI), Juan Francisco Sandoval, recently seized $29 billion in cash, of which Mr. Giammattei is directly involved. To avoid investigations against the president and his allies, Porras illegally fired the head of the FECI last Friday.

Porras and the previous two governments have dedicated themselves to removing prosecutors and magistrates who work for justice and against corruption from their posts, all of whom have received death threats and are now in exile. It is worth mentioning that the previous government also removed the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala.

On the other hand, despite the $80 million earmarked to purchase Sputnik V vaccines, only 150,000 doses have arrived in the country. It is not known where the money has gone or where the rest of the vaccines are. Other investigations from the FECI revealed that Russian nationals had come to president Giammattei’s house with money in cash.

The dismissal of Francisco Sandoval took place on July 23, 2021. In a country with a co-opted justice system, where can we go to report the 200 pending corruption cases involving the president’s allies? Guatemala is tired of so much cynicism, impudence, impunity, and corruption in the state. A national strike is expected for July 30.

-Sylvia Castel