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        {"code":"27524","sect":"Opinion","sect_slug":"opinion","hits":"573","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/en\/202408\/opinion\/27524","link_edit":"","name":"Consuelo Porras Stokes Political Turmoil Amid Guatemalan Court Elections","slug":"consuelo-porras-stokes-political-turmoil-amid-guatemalan-court-elections","info":"In her newest push to prosecute Bernardo Ar\u00e9valo, the Guatemalan attorney general\u2019s goals are not legal but political: she presents herself as Ar\u00e9valo&#039;s opponent and uses the machinery of the Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office to keep the president in check and sow a national climate of anxiety.","mtag":"Politics","noun":{"html":"\u003Cspan class='tint-text--dark' data_href='\/user\/profile\/amontenegro'\u003E \u00c1lvaro Montenegro\u003C\/span\u003E","data":{"alvaro-montenegro":{"sort":"amontenegro","slug":"alvaro-montenegro","path":"alvaro_montenegro","name":"\u00c1lvaro Montenegro","edge":"0","init":"0"}}},"view":"573","pict":{"cms-image-000040488-jpeg":{"feat":"1","sort":"40488","name":"cms-image-000040488.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040488.jpeg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040488.jpeg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000040488-jpeg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Guatemalan Attorney General Consuelo Porras (center) and \u00c1ngel Pineda, secretary-general of the Public Prosecutor's Office, attend a Labor Conference held by the conservative business association CACIF on May 8, 2024, in Guatemala City. Photo Public Prosecutor's Office&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EGuatemalan Attorney General Consuelo Porras (center) and \u00c1ngel Pineda, secretary-general of the Public Prosecutor's Office, attend a Labor Conference held by the conservative business association CACIF on May 8, 2024, in Guatemala City. Photo Public Prosecutor's Office\u003C\/p\u003E"}},"pict_main__sort":40488,"date":{"live":"2024\/08\/12"},"data_post_dateLive_YY":"2024","data_post_dateLive_MM":"08","data_post_dateLive_DD":"12","text":"\u003Cp id=\"docs-internal-guid-5b033050-7fff-83af-d331-f364b845e3bf\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Ca href=\"\/es\/202408\/columnas\/27522\/consuelo-porras-siembra-zozobra-en-medio-de-la-eleccion-de-cortes\"\u003ELeer en espa\u00f1ol\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EAttorney General Consuelo Porras, sanctioned for corruption in over 40 countries, has not stopped harassing the government of Bernardo Ar\u00e9valo. Even though he took office in January, the attorney general continues to press forward in her coup crusade. She recently presented a request to the Constitutional Court (CC) to prosecute President Ar\u00e9valo criminally and to dismiss four of his closest officials: Solicitor General Julio Saavedra, Secretary General of the Presidency Juan Gerardo Guerrero, Minister of Finance Jonathan Menkos, and Secretary of Communication Santiago Palomo.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EPorras is a product of the Guatemalan system \u2014she has worked for 30 years in different positions\u2014 and her specialty is hollow discourse. In her more than 400-page brief accusing Ar\u00e9valo, the attorney general argued that the president and officials have disobeyed an injunction granted to her by the Court in May. That injunction was granted against \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202405\/centroamerica\/27397\/arevalos-reform-bill-to-sack-consuelo-porras-stalls-in-gridlocked-congress\"\u003Ethe initiative that Ar\u00e9valo presented to Congress\u003C\/a\u003E to modify the Organic Law of the Public Prosecutor's Office (MP) to make Porras accountable, and after an evaluation, giving the president the power to dismiss her. But the injunction never prevented the president from proposing legislation or criticizing public officials.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe effect Porras seeks, in any case, is not legal but political: to continue presenting herself as Ar\u00e9valo's opponent and use the machinery of the prosecutor\u2019s office to keep the president in check and sow a national climate of anxiety. In the brief, she quotes dozens of tweets of officials and social organizations with which she seeks to spread the feeling that the eye of \u201cBig Brother\u201d is watching what the population writes online. She sends this message so that certain people feel observed; she openly argues that what is written or reposted by officials when they criticize the attorney general implies the commission of a crime. And it is especially symbolic because \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/dcuevas_gtv\/status\/1818809073397035132\"\u003Ethe officials she accuses have been the most vocal\u003C\/a\u003E, including those who have signed legal actions against her.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIn response, President Ar\u00e9valo has petitioned the same Court to revoke the injunction, which he argues should never have been granted. He has also filed a preliminary accusation to have Porras\u2019 immunity revoked, citing her violation of the constitution and abuse of authority. Many believe that Porras has committed numerous crimes, but the obstacle to accountability, of course, lies in the fact that she cannot prosecute herself. Therefore, there is a pressing need for an independent review to investigate the actions of the MP, as recommended by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights after their recent visit to the country that ended on July 26, which highlighted the policy of criminalization.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EConsuelo Porras has created an atmosphere of fear and disrespect for human rights as she, the top law enforcement official, openly twists the rules. Corruption cases, on the other hand, are being closed, and we see politicians prosecuted for stealing loads of money going home free, and brandishing the tools of lawfare against prosecutors, judges, and journalists who investigated them.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThis is happening amid an internationally observed election of the magistrates of the Supreme Court of Justice and Appellate Courts. Two nomination commissions are currently reviewing the files of those who aspire to be magistrates of both courts. The commissions work simultaneously, and there are several problems of origin, such as that magistrates of the appellate courts are part of one commission and will apply for the other; the same is true of the members of the Supreme Court. This creates a conflict of interest because they conspire to apply the criterion \u201cI elect you, you elect me\u201d to further the reelection of magistrates under scrutiny. In addition, a group of members of these commissions is fighting to delay and hogtie the process. Now, they are trying to say that, contrary to the custom, the headquarters of the nomination commission should not be at the Jesuit-run Rafael Land\u00edvar University, which, \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.oas.org\/es\/centro_noticias\/comunicado_prensa.asp?sCodigo=C-051\/24\"\u003Eas the OAS observation mission noted\u003C\/a\u003E, would detract from the credibility of the process.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThese tactics are being marshaled by the lawyers of those accused of corruption, who seek to control the selection of magistrates to boost candidates committed to impunity; from that list, the Congress will have to elect the next members of the country\u2019s courts in October. It is also objectionable that the entire Judicial Branch changes at a stroke; it should be done in a staggered manner and for longer periods in order to try to guarantee greater judicial independence and that the courts are not subject to political ebbs and flows. However, changing this requires reforming the Constitution, which seems a far-off goal.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ETwo years ago, in a similar process, Consuelo Porras succeeded in getting a Nomination Commission to include her in the short list from which the president was to re-elect her, despite other candidates scoring higher in terms of probity. She used a tried-and-true technique: she frightened the deans of law schools, who were part of the commission, by threatening to bring cases against them. Then, the Constitutional Court granted an injunction to Porras ordering that she be included in the short list. This time around, given the ongoing climate of instability that the attorney general is kindling, a repeat of that scenario must not be ruled out. This could generate further delays in the court election process or even bring it to a halt, as the current courts have served the interests of Porras and her allies very well.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe OAS observation mission requested by Ar\u00e9valo has come to Guatemala twice to monitor the court election process with support from the Foreign Affairs Committee of the U.S. Senate. Last year, \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202307\/centroamerica\/26963\/giammattei-maneuvers-to-avoid-oas-condemnation-of-election-interference\"\u003Ethe OAS played a crucial role in supporting democracy\u003C\/a\u003E so that Ar\u00e9valo could take office despite attacks by the Public Prosecutor's Office. Once again, the OAS can support a change of courts in the best possible way. International \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202406\/centroamerica\/27468\/%E2%80%9CDemocratic-fissures-stem-from-poor-judicial-appointments%E2%80%9D.htm\"\u003Ecivil society has also established a Panel of Independent Experts\u003C\/a\u003E. These entities, along with local and international civil society groups, will play a crucial role in conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the process and identifying any irregularities or delays. It is vital to closely monitor this election and to condemn the atmosphere that Porras is fostering in her attempt to maintain control over the judiciary and impede the progress of democracy by restricting President Ar\u00e9valo's actions.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Chr \/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u00c1lvaro Montenegro is a Guatemalan journalist who received his LL.M. specializing in human rights and international humanitarian law from American University in Washington, D.C. He has been a fellow of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and has co-founded civil society platforms in Guatemala committed to the fight against impunity.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E"}

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