Bernardo Arévalo, Guatemala’s President-Elect, warns of a plan to stop him from becoming President in January 2024.
He won the election with 58% of the votes last August. But the courts have now disqualified his political party, Semilla.
Arévalo says some politicians and officials are trying to wreck the country’s democracy.
Because of this, the new members of his party won’t have full powers in Congress. They can’t lead committees or form groups.
Arévalo has been under extra safety watch for a week. There are reports of plans to hurt him. The extra safety came from a human rights group.
Luis Linares, an independent analyst, talked about the issue. He says legal tricks might force Arévalo into bad deals.
Linares added that this won’t stop Arévalo or his deputies from taking office.
In Washington, Eladio Loizaga of the OAS shared the same worries. He said these court actions risk Guatemala’s democracy.
Guatemala’s Foreign Minister, Mario Búcaro, said the current President will step down peacefully in January.
Arévalo is set to take office on January 14, 2024. He’s the son of a past reformist President.
He won because he promised to fight corruption and make big changes in Guatemala. The country faces problems like poverty and corruption.
Bernardo Arévalo is the son of Juan José Arévalo, a former Guatemalan President. Juan José led the country from 1945 to 1951 and was a reformist.
His leadership period was known as Guatemala’s “Democratic Spring.”
However, the reform era ended abruptly. A U.S.-backed military coup overthrew the next President, Jacobo Árbenz, in 1954.
This led to decades of instability and civil war in Guatemala.
Right-wing governments have led the country for the last 12 years. The most recent President is Alejandro Giammattei.
His term is expected to end in January 2024.