After about 18 hours of raid and between struggles with the magistrates of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) of Guatemalathe Prosecutor’s Office seized this weekend the minutes of the last presidential elections that certify the victory of the elected Bernardo Arévalo.
(Read: ‘Coup d’état is being prepared in Guatemala’: Gustavo Petro after court raid)
This is the fourth raid carried out by the entity at the TSE offices in recent months.which intensified after Arévalo’s victory during the second round that took place on August 20.
The actions of the Public Ministry have caused rejection in the international community and have increased the atmosphere of uncertainty in the Central American country.
The raid began on Friday in response to complaints of alleged irregularities in the electoral process, according to prosecutor Rafael Curruchiche, in charge of the operation.
The case for which the TSE raid was carried out, and which extended until this Saturday, has not been detailed by the authorities, since the Prosecutor’s Office has indicated that he is under “judicial reserve”, measure that limits access to information about the process.
Curruchiche asserted on Friday in statements to journalists that the objective of the judicial process is to save “democracy” in Guatemala. Arévalo and his political movement, the Semilla movement, have been under scrutiny since they advanced to the second round for alleged corruption.
However, The actions of the prosecutor’s office have been denounced by Arévalo as a “coup d’état in progress” to prevent him from taking office on January 14.
The Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs of the United States, Brian Nichols, wrote on Friday in X that his government will demand “accountability of those who participate in actions to undermine the democratic transition to the president-elect” after rejecting the prosecutor’s operation .
“Institutions must respect the will of the Guatemalan people,” the US official said.
Also the head of diplomacy of the European Union, Josep Borrell, condemned “with complete firmness” the “unacceptable raid” on the TSE.
“The siege on democracy cannot continue,” he wrote this Saturday in X.
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, for his part, stated in his X account that in Guatemala “a coup d’état is being prepared.”
“In American territory there should not be one more coup d’état, nor one more mockery of the popular mandate. The Guatemalan prosecutor’s office is the instrument of the coup and in the OAS the use of the democratic charter must be enlisted,” the president wrote. .
A coup d’état is being prepared in Guatemala. All democratic governments in the Americas and the world must be ready to respond.
In American territory there should not be one more coup d’état, nor one more mockery of the popular mandate.
The Guatemalan prosecutor’s office is the… https://t.co/dSSrD5nMFm
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) September 30, 2023
Meanwhile, the observation mission of the Organization of American States noted on Friday that the actions against the electoral tribunal “constitute a shameful example for the hemisphere.”
Curruchiche’s actions are supported by the attorney general, Consuelo Porras, and the raids have been authorized by Judge Fredy Orellana. All three are considered by Washington to be “corrupt” and “undemocratic.”
But what is behind the actions of the Guatemalan Prosecutor’s Office?
Why is the Prosecutor’s Office carrying out four raids to the TSE?
For Valeria Vásquez, senior analyst for Central America at Control Risks, the Prosecutor’s Office has an agenda in all the actions and investigations it has launched. since Arévalo reached the second round and that have deepened since he was elected.
“The objective is to delegitimize Arévalo’s victory”explains Vásquez. The truth is that this seizure of the minutes is an episode that had not been seen in any electoral process in the region. “This will increase international scrutiny in Guatemala“added the analyst.
Prosecutors Porras and Currichiche have been under the scrutiny of the international community in recent months. “They know that when Arévalo comes to power he will remove all these ties of corruption that exist in the Prosecutor’s Office.”says Vasquez.
How much support does the Prosecutor’s Office have in the country? According to the analyst, the outgoing president, Alejandro Giammatei, has maintained a passive attitude towards these actions of the Public Ministry and it is said that behind the scenes he supports them.
“The Prosecutor’s Office has support from the Executive. Giamattei created an alliance with Consuelo Porras and it was evident when she was re-elected to the position of Attorney General,” he notes.
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