Latin America
Guatemala: Protests against Attorney General’s Office
A woman holds up a sign reading “Parasites Out” during a demonstration in Guatemala City. Thousands of people are protesting against the Attorney General’s Office in the Latin American country. photo
© Moises Castillo/AP/dpa
Bernardo Arévalo is actually supposed to be sworn in as Guatemala’s new president in January – but the Attorney General’s Office is interfering. Now thousands are taking to the streets for the Social Democrats.
A month after the election in Guatemala, thousands of people protested yesterday Attorney General’s Office protested and expressed support for elected President Bernardo Arévalo.
Since the Social Democrat’s election victory on August 20, the Attorney General’s Office has been trying to suspend his party for controversial reasons. The 64-year-old Arévalo, who has dedicated himself to fighting corruption in the Central American country, called for the resignation of Attorney General Consuelo Porras. At the same time, the ex-diplomat filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court to stop what he saw as the undemocratic actions of the judiciary against his election.
“Citizens have already expressed their will, and what the people of Guatemala want is change,” Arévalo said. Guatemalans wanted to wrest the institutions from the hands of corrupt political elites. The future president spoke of an attempted coup. Corrupt actors in the judiciary and politics tried to prevent his swearing in on January 14th. The EU and the USA also recently condemned the attempts to undermine democracy.