The president-elect of Guatemala, Bernardo Arévalo, has invited various political actors in the country to find a way out of the institutional crisis that the Central American country is going through.
“In the following days we will meet with sectors to advance and maintain the unity of Guatemalans and avoid the escalation of violence,” said Arevalo in a press conference with Vice President-elect Karin Herrera.
Bernardo Arévalo condemned that the Constitutional Court (CC) ordered the use of force against demonstrators who were peacefully protesting at the headquarters of the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) in the country’s capital.
The president-elect rejected the violent acts and warned that the CC’s measure against the demonstrators will only increase the conflict. During the press conference Arévalo asked the Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office and the Ministry of the Interior (Mingob) to ensure the physical integrity of the demonstrators.
While Bernardo Arévalo offered the conference to journalists, authorities and indigenous leaders of Guatemala, they met with the head of the Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office (PDH). In that meeting they also criticized the decision of the CC to order the forced eviction of the demonstrators from the MP headquarters.
The indigenous authorities agreed with the president elect in warning that the CC’s measure could worsen the crisis in the country, because the only thing they have requested is the resignation of officials who threaten the country’s democracy.
On Wednesday, the CC ordered the Ministry of the Interior and the National Civil Police (PNC) to remove the demonstrators within six hours and allow full access to the headquarters of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
