Guatemala’s Constitutional Court temporarily overturns the suspension of the Movimiento Semilla party

The full judges of the Constitutional Court (CC) of Guatemala announced this Thursday that granted temporary protection to the Movimiento Semilla partywhich terminated the suspension of legal personality, a day after the judge, at the request of the Prosecutor’s Office, issued the said order due to the alleged criminal offense of money laundering or other property.

In a statement, the court explained that it agreed with the request for temporary protection submitted by the affected political formation. Therefore, the decision of the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) on the officiality of the results of the first round of elections is not suspended and the second round will be held “on the specified date and with the participation of official candidates.

Also, it was indicated that this measure affects the election process, but that the State Ministry can continue with actions that are within its jurisdiction in terms of criminal prosecution.

The leaders of the Semena Movement said that this protection is a consequence of the fact that the Constitutional Court considers that the judge’s decision It’s illegalindicating that they exceeded their authority and acted outside the framework of legality, destroying the constitutional order.

The candidate of Movimiento Semilla, Bernardo Arévalo, and his ‘number two’, Karin Herrera, announced just before the presentation of the amparo before the Constitutional Court and the lawsuit against the special prosecutor against impunity, Rafael Curruchiche, for fraud and other abuses, in front of the public of the Ministry, where sympathizers demonstrated in support of the party leaders.

“See you soon in front of the Ministry of Public Affairs to present together a complaint for the preservation of the country’s institutions. Democracy prevails today and will prevail tomorrow,” Arévalo said via his Twitter profile.

State support for TSE

Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei expressed his support for the TSE’s decision to officially announce the results of the first round. “The executive authority will provide all the necessary guarantees provided by the Law on Elections and Political Parties for the second round of elections scheduled for August 20 next year,” he said.

As stated in the Government announcement, they “respect the rule of law and the independence of the authorities within the system”, emphasizing that they “stay away from any judicial process”.

They also reiterated the Government’s support and support for the political formation that wins the elections “to enable an orderly, transparent and efficient transition process, in favor of strengthening democracy”.

The USA is committed to respecting the will of the people

The US State Department expressed concern about the political situation in Guatemala, indicating that they are taking into account “a wide range of voices in Guatemalan society who have expressed concern that the actions of the Prosecutor’s Office violate the electoral law” of the Central American country.

“These actions jeopardize the legitimacy of the electoral process in Guatemala’s democracy, which must be promoted and defended in accordance with the Constitution and the Inter-American Democratic Charter,” Department spokesman Matthew Miller condemned in a statement.

Therefore, he emphasized that “the will of the Guatemalan people expressed through the results of the June 25 election must be respected.” Miller also celebrated the certification of the results, which “confirm the credibility and integrity of the election process the most notable in the history of Guatemala».

“This should lay the groundwork for a free and fair run-off election on August 20 between the two presidential candidates who received the most votes in the first round, Sandra Torres of the National Unity of Hope (UNE) party and Bernard Aréval. the Seed party,” he asserted.

When the prosecutor broke the news of the suspension order, the TSE judges were in a meeting, debriefing minutes after the results were official, and were unaware of the extent of the party’s suspension. With this decision, Aréval’s participation in the second round was up in the air.

Left-wing party candidate Bernardo Arévalo, surprised in the presidential elections in Guatemala by being in second place, behind Sandra Torres, from the National Unity of Hope (UNE), one of the favorites in the elections. Polls placed the Seed Movement, one of the few options on the left among the twenty proposals presented, between the seventh and eighth preferences of the electorate.