Guatemala - Giammattei’s crackdown

The president's corruption and undermining of democracy are part of the root causes of migration.

Guatemalan authorities arrested José Rubén Zamora, the founder of elPeriódico, last Friday. They also raided the newspaper offices and froze bank accounts related to the media outlet. The first sentence of the New York Times story on the arrest states that it is part of “growing political repression in Guatemala.”

Much of this crackdown relates to Giammattei and those around him shutting down efforts to investigate high level corruption. After the previous president, Jimmy Morales, removed CICIG, the country’s anti-corruption efforts have floundered and been undermined by political appointments that do more to cover up corruption than investigate it. When prosecutors try to investigate, they are threatened and fired. Now, when journalists attempt to write about corruption, they are detained.

The corruption is very real. As one example, an El Faro investigation last February documented bribes given to Giammattei’s presidential campaign.

Our recent polling roundup showed Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei as among the least popular presidents in the hemisphere. He recently appeared in public and the local crowd in Antigua shouted rude insults at him.

Also last week, there was an incident in which gunmen, allegedly part of the CJNG, attacked a Guatemalan presidential convoy that was driving near the Mexican border. The attacks aren’t directly linked to the crackdown, but the CJNG infiltration of the country is one of the consequences of Giammattei undermining anti-corruption efforts. When countries allow high level politicians to be bribed with impunity, they create spaces for organized crime to operate.

In an interview with France 24 last week, Guatemala’s ombudsman Jordan Rodas called the Giammattei government “authoritarian” and suggested the country’s institutions had been co-opted by corrupt actors close to the president. Rodas will end his five year term later this month, and while he has limited formal power, his exit removes one of the final critical watchdogs on the president’s authority and abuses of power. Many prosecutors, judges, and other officials combating corruption have been forced to resign and flee the country in recent years.

In that same interview, Rodas calls for more sanctions on corrupt actors in Guatemala. I understand his sentiment, but countering corruption is going to take more than sanctions, which have so far proven ineffective in changing the behavior of Giammattei and those around him. We should be looking at who Giammattei fears. The answer is journalists and civil society members who are exposing his corruption publicly. They need to be backed with greater resources and given platforms to speak whenever possible.

Guatemala announced this morning that authorities had arrested some migrant smugglers. Immigration is a hot-button issue in the US, but the Biden administration should certainly know better than to believe that these arrests will help. The “root causes” driving illegal migration include government corruption. No amount of smuggler detentions makes up for the crackdown and undermining of democracy occurring in the country.