Tension in Congress delays Bernardo Arévalo’s inauguration as president of Guatemala

target of legal maneuvers that for months sought to invalidate the surprising victory he obtained with the promise of combating corruption.

Although the Constitution of Guatemala states that Congress must swear in the new president no later than 4:00 pm local time (22:00 GMT), when that deadline expired, the new parliament was not even installed.

“Deputies have the responsibility to respect the popular will expressed at the polls. They are trying to violate democracy with illegalities, trifles and abuses of power”, wrote Arévalo on the social network X (formerly Twitter).

The Congress, mostly right-wing, is unable to reach an agreement on the election of the new board because it is discussing whether to declare the deputies of the Semilla de Arévalo party “independent”, due to a court order that suspends that political movement due to alleged irregularities in its creation.

The delay in the investiture triggered unrest among hundreds of Arévalo’s followers, including many indigenous people, who, amid clashes with the police, went to the parliamentary headquarters. So far the police have not repressed the demonstration.

The sociologist, former diplomat and philosopher, Arévalo, 65, unexpectedly went into the presidential runoff in June with a conservative candidate allied with the ruling party, who he comfortably defeated with 60% of the vote for his anti-corruption message.

Since then, Arévalo and the Semilla Movement have faced a judicial offensive that they denounced as a “coup d’état”, behind which was the political and economic elite that for decades governed the country’s destinies.

The Public Ministry tried to remove his immunity as president-elect, dismantle his progressive party and annul the elections, arguing that there were electoral anomalies.

The attack, based on “spurious” cases, according to Arévalo, was condemned by the UN, the OAS, the European Union and the United States, which sanctioned hundreds of prosecutors, judges and deputies for “corruption” and “undermining democracy”.

As a sign of support, the transfer of command is attended by the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, delegates from Washington, the King of Spain, Felipe VI, and, among others, the presidents of Colombia, Chile, Honduras and Panama .

“The Guatemalan people and the international community are watching,” Arévalo added in X.

A meeting of foreign ministers present at the investiture was urgently called by Costa Rica.

Arévalo will replace the right-wing Alejandro Giammattei, who was linked to the so-called “pact of the corrupt” and during whose government dozens of prosecutors, judges and journalists who denounced acts of corruption were exiled.

Son of Guatemala’s first democratic president, Arévalo recognizes that he will face enormous challenges because the “political-criminal elites, at least for a while, will continue to be entrenched” in the powers of the State.

Arévalo will ask for the resignation of Attorney General Consuelo Porras, leading the judicial offensive, this week, but analysts do not rule out that the Public Ministry will continue the persecution and ask Congress to remove his presidential immunity.

“He will be under permanent harassment. His biggest challenge is to respond to the people’s desire: not to be governed by the gangsters’ pact. He has to dismantle it to be able to govern,” analyst Manfredo Marroquín told AFP.

The Guatemala that Arévalo inherits ranks 30th out of 180 countries in Transparency International’s corruption ranking and with 60% of its 17.8 million inhabitants living in poverty, one of the highest rates in Latin America.

Tens of thousands of people emigrate to the United States every year in search of work and escaping gang and drug violence.

“It’s not all in his hands, we don’t expect 100% change, but he does what he said,” said Hellen Chua, an 18-year-old university student.

According to Arévalo, “the most urgent thing” is to recover the institutions “co-opted by the corrupt”, but “the most important thing” is to work for social development.

To this end, he appointed a cabinet of 14 ministers. But it was criticized by some followers for including figures from the private sector or linked to previous governments, and only one indigenous person.

Son of Juan José Arévalo (president 1945-1951), promoter of social reforms, he was born in Montevideo and lived as a child in Venezuela, Mexico and Chile, in exile from his father after the coup d’état orchestrated by Washington in 1954 against the progressive Jacobo Árbenz.

Source: Elcomercio

jack

I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.