Tom III
2015-09-04 06:47:00 UTC
MEXICO CITY In a sweeping rejection of entrenched corruption,
Guatemalas Congress voted on Tuesday to strip President Otto
Pérez Molina of his immunity from prosecution, a unanimous
decision that acknowledged the outpouring of citizen demands for
an end to impunity.
The 132-0 vote was the culmination of a tumultuous five months
since prosecutors revealed the existence of the ring in April,
describing how officials received bribes in exchange for
discounted tariffs, a scheme that effectively stole millions
from the treasury.
As rain fell over Guatemala City, jubilant crowds outside after
the vote shouted, Yes, we could!
The case sparked an outpouring of protest from ordinary
Guatemalans, who began staging weekly protests in Guatemala
Citys central plaza, demanding the presidents resignation,
although he had yet to be linked directly to the scheme.
ut it was not until Aug. 21, when prosecutors announced that
their evidence pointed to Mr. Pérez Molina as one of the
schemes ringleaders, that Guatemalas elite joined the calls
for Mr. Pérez Molina to step down.
On Thursday, many of the countrys businesses joined a general
strike as an estimated 100,000 protesters massed outside the
presidential palace calling for Mr. Pérez Molina to step down
after the Supreme Court ruled that Congress could consider
taking away his immunity.
In an hourlong news conference on Monday, Mr. Pérez Molina, a
retired general, angrily denied the accusations and refused to
step down, adding that he would submit to due process. I have
not taken one cent from that fraudulent structure that was
practically stealing from Guatemalans, he said.
The congressional vote does not remove the president from
office, and several steps remain before Mr. Pérez Molina would
face trial. First, a criminal court judge must rule that Mr.
Pérez Molina is not fit for office and that a trial should
proceed. Before that, the nations constitutional court must
rule on two motions filed by the presidents lawyers.
But removing the presidents immunity has enormous symbolism in
a country long divided by class and race and where impunity for
the powerful was the rule in a system fueled by corruption.
It sends a very powerful message both to Guatemalans and to
other countries in the region, said Adriana Beltrán, a senior
associate at the Washington Office on Latin America. That the
justice system can be made to work, even against those that have
been historically deemed untouchable. That you can have the rule
of law and respect due process and human rights.
Many watching the events over the past months argue that they
mark a broader change in Guatemala, signaling an end to a sense
of powerlessness over government corruption.
I would say that Guatemala today is not the Guatemala from
before April, Ms. Beltrán said.
The case against Mr. Pérez Molina, which forced the resignation
of his vice president, Roxana Baldetti, in May, was brought by a
United Nations-backed commission of independent prosecutors that
has been working alongside the Guatemalan attorney generals
office for almost a decade. A commission against corruption in
Guatemala has brought down a series of corrupt officials,
developing complex cases using wiretaps and other evidence.
Its work has strengthened Guatemalas own prosecutors, hampered
by limited resources.
Ms. Baldetti appeared in court last week and was ordered to
stand trial in the fraud case.
The political turmoil has played out against the backdrop of an
election campaign that has been caught up in the protests.
Voters go to the polls on Sunday, although no candidate is
expected to win 50 percent, and a second round between the top
two candidates is set for Oct. 25.
Mr. Pérez Molina is not eligible for re-election and his term
ends on Jan. 14. Leading academics and civil society groups had
asked for Sundays election to be postponed, arguing for time to
put electoral reforms in place.
Manuel Baldizón, a wealthy businessman, has led the polls for
much of the campaign. But the urban middle classes that have
flocked to the protests have made it clear that they consider
him part of the same corrupt system, shouting: Its your turn
next.
Jimmy Morales, a television announcer who is running as an
outsider, has moved up in the polls. Sandra Torres, a former
first lady, is in third place.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/02/world/americas/guatemala-votes-
to-strip-its-president-of-immunity.html
Guatemalas Congress voted on Tuesday to strip President Otto
Pérez Molina of his immunity from prosecution, a unanimous
decision that acknowledged the outpouring of citizen demands for
an end to impunity.
The 132-0 vote was the culmination of a tumultuous five months
since prosecutors revealed the existence of the ring in April,
describing how officials received bribes in exchange for
discounted tariffs, a scheme that effectively stole millions
from the treasury.
As rain fell over Guatemala City, jubilant crowds outside after
the vote shouted, Yes, we could!
The case sparked an outpouring of protest from ordinary
Guatemalans, who began staging weekly protests in Guatemala
Citys central plaza, demanding the presidents resignation,
although he had yet to be linked directly to the scheme.
ut it was not until Aug. 21, when prosecutors announced that
their evidence pointed to Mr. Pérez Molina as one of the
schemes ringleaders, that Guatemalas elite joined the calls
for Mr. Pérez Molina to step down.
On Thursday, many of the countrys businesses joined a general
strike as an estimated 100,000 protesters massed outside the
presidential palace calling for Mr. Pérez Molina to step down
after the Supreme Court ruled that Congress could consider
taking away his immunity.
In an hourlong news conference on Monday, Mr. Pérez Molina, a
retired general, angrily denied the accusations and refused to
step down, adding that he would submit to due process. I have
not taken one cent from that fraudulent structure that was
practically stealing from Guatemalans, he said.
The congressional vote does not remove the president from
office, and several steps remain before Mr. Pérez Molina would
face trial. First, a criminal court judge must rule that Mr.
Pérez Molina is not fit for office and that a trial should
proceed. Before that, the nations constitutional court must
rule on two motions filed by the presidents lawyers.
But removing the presidents immunity has enormous symbolism in
a country long divided by class and race and where impunity for
the powerful was the rule in a system fueled by corruption.
It sends a very powerful message both to Guatemalans and to
other countries in the region, said Adriana Beltrán, a senior
associate at the Washington Office on Latin America. That the
justice system can be made to work, even against those that have
been historically deemed untouchable. That you can have the rule
of law and respect due process and human rights.
Many watching the events over the past months argue that they
mark a broader change in Guatemala, signaling an end to a sense
of powerlessness over government corruption.
I would say that Guatemala today is not the Guatemala from
before April, Ms. Beltrán said.
The case against Mr. Pérez Molina, which forced the resignation
of his vice president, Roxana Baldetti, in May, was brought by a
United Nations-backed commission of independent prosecutors that
has been working alongside the Guatemalan attorney generals
office for almost a decade. A commission against corruption in
Guatemala has brought down a series of corrupt officials,
developing complex cases using wiretaps and other evidence.
Its work has strengthened Guatemalas own prosecutors, hampered
by limited resources.
Ms. Baldetti appeared in court last week and was ordered to
stand trial in the fraud case.
The political turmoil has played out against the backdrop of an
election campaign that has been caught up in the protests.
Voters go to the polls on Sunday, although no candidate is
expected to win 50 percent, and a second round between the top
two candidates is set for Oct. 25.
Mr. Pérez Molina is not eligible for re-election and his term
ends on Jan. 14. Leading academics and civil society groups had
asked for Sundays election to be postponed, arguing for time to
put electoral reforms in place.
Manuel Baldizón, a wealthy businessman, has led the polls for
much of the campaign. But the urban middle classes that have
flocked to the protests have made it clear that they consider
him part of the same corrupt system, shouting: Its your turn
next.
Jimmy Morales, a television announcer who is running as an
outsider, has moved up in the polls. Sandra Torres, a former
first lady, is in third place.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/02/world/americas/guatemala-votes-
to-strip-its-president-of-immunity.html