Guatemala: Giamatti promised an “orderly” transition, but the United States condemned attempts to “undermine” democracy

president Of Guatemala, Alejandro GiamattiHe reiterated on Tuesday that an “orderly” transfer of power would take place with elected authorities and under the supervision of the Organization of American States. while, The United States and the European Union expressed concern about the actions of those who continue to try to “undermine” democracy in the Central American country.

“Now the doors are open for an orderly and transparent government transition,” the head of state said in a message broadcast on national television.

The Guatemalan president announced that he would meet on September 4 with the elected authorities in the August 20 elections to “explain the timetable and methodology for the transition.”

“The meeting will be supervised by the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, at the request of the government,” Giamatti said.

The United States, for its part, said so It expresses its “deep concern” about the actions of those who continue to try to “undermine” democracy in Guatemala.

“The United States remains concerned about the ongoing actions of those who seek to undermine democracy in Guatemala. Such anti-democratic behavior, including efforts by the Public Ministry and other actors to suspend the political party of the elected president and intimidate electoral authorities, undermines the manifest will of the Guatemalan people and contravenes the principles of the United Nations. American Democratic Charter,” the US State Department stated.

Government Joe Biden This was uttered after Guatemala witnessed two important events on the eve of its occurrence: the certification of the victory of the Progressive Party by the Supreme Electoral Court. Bernardo Arevalo de Leon In the elections scheduled for August 20, meanwhile, Suspension of his political party Seed movement.

“The United States remains deeply concerned about the actions of those who are trying to undermine democracy in Guatemala. These efforts undermine the clear will of the Guatemalan people,” said the White House spokeswoman. Karen Jean-Pierre at a press conference.

The spokeswoman added that the United States stands shoulder to shoulder with its partners in the international community and the Guatemalan people against these “unacceptable efforts” against Guatemalan democracy.

Finally, Jean-Pierre took the opportunity to reiterate his congratulations to Arevalo on his victory at the polls on August 20.

In this context, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union stressed, Josep Borrell described the temporary suspension of seed movement as “arbitrary”.to which President-elect Bernardo Arevalo belongs, condemned the arrest of lawyer Claudia Gonzalez, an action that illustrates the “abuse” of justice in the country.

“The European Union calls on all political parties, branches of government and institutions to fully respect the integrity of the electoral process and its results, as concluded by Guatemalans at the ballot box,” he said in a statement.

In this sense, he expressed his “deep concern” about it The “ongoing” attempts to “undermine the election results through selective and arbitrary measures.” which are not in line with the international and regional standards that Guatemala has signed up to.”

“The European Union remains fully committed to supporting democracy in Guatemala, as evidenced by the deployment of the European Union Election Observation Mission at the invitation of the Guatemalan authorities,” he said. He added that despite the recent legal procedures, “the results are clear.”

Borrell also asserted that the “clear exploitation of judicial institutions” It seeks to “criminalize” independent judges. For this reason, he condemned the arrest of lawyer Claudia Gonzalez, who represents the former head of the Office of the Special Prosecutor for the Fight against Impunity, Juan Francisco Sandoval, and who was part of the UN Commission against Corruption that was already dissolved in the country.

He noted that “continued efforts to annul the election result and continued use of judicial and procedural institutions to undermine the rule of law will inevitably have an impact on Guatemala’s international relations, including the European Union.”

On January 14th, progressive academic Bernardo Arevalo de Leon is to take office President of the Central American country for the period 2024-2028.

Arevalo de Leon of the Movimento Simela party won the presidential run-off with 2.5 million votes, defeating his opponent, former First Lady Sandra Torres Casanova, of the Unity of National Hope (UNE) party by 21 percentage points. He described the formalization of electoral results as “illegal”.

“There is a barrage of anomalies pointed out by the UNE party to the competent authorities, both constitutional and criminal, that make any attempt by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal to announce the results of the elections under the present circumstances illegal and illegitimate.” Read the statement. Thus, the formation indicated that it expects organizations such as the Comptroller General of Accounts and the Public Prosecution Office to “do their job to contribute to clarifying the events that took place in the first round and in the second round in order to ensure the purity of the elections and democracy,” although the Supreme Electoral Court highlighted that the elections It was characterized by “professional, impartial and transparent” management.

The electoral process in Guatemala It has come under international scrutiny due to its high levels of prosecution and criminal prosecution Candidates and political parties suffered, becoming the most controversial election in the country’s history.

(With information from EFE and Europe Press)

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