Central America
CC’s resolution that orders to repeat the scrutiny review hearing is questioned
July 4 |
During the morning of July 2, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) had not issued a position on the provisional injunction granted by the CC, while the Departmental Electoral Board (JED) of Guatemala and the Central District Electoral Board (JEDC) had not been notified and were waiting for indications from the TSE to proceed with the injunction.
The Constitutional Court (CC) granted a provisional injunction to a group of nine political parties, generating a series of steps for the verification of the minutes, preventing the TSE from making official the results of the general elections of June 25.
With this resolution, the different electoral boards of the country have to repeat the scrutiny review hearing, where challenges could be presented in minutes that, according to the criteria of the political parties, are not completely clear.
For example, some of the minutes that have been questioned are those that have a series of erasures, along with others that appear to have errors in the addition of the votes, according to the political organizations.
The resolution of last Saturday, contemplates that in case the review of the tally sheets is not necessary, there is the possibility of a vote by vote count, which would mean opening the electoral boxes that are already in possession of the TSE, specifically in the Center of Operations of the Electoral Process (COPE), installed in the Parque de la Industria.
“The electoral boxes are no longer in the possession of the Electoral Boards, because they are already delivered to the TSE”, explained Kenneth Ordoñez, secretary of the JED of Guatemala.
“There in those boxes is the vote of the Guatemalans”, explained the secretary, adding that he agrees with electoral observation groups that affirm the need to safeguard the boxes containing the ballots. “In those boxes is the popular will and now we need the boxes back,” he says.
For his part José Murúa, president of the JEDC, points out that before proceeding they need indications from the highest electoral body. “We are waiting for the procedure indicated by the TSE, to evaluate how to proceed. Until the processes in process are not concluded, the appointment of mayor and councilmen cannot be concluded”.
The CC, after issuing the provisional injunction in favor of the parties, transferred the injunction to the Supreme Court of Justice (CSJ), since they stated that due to issues of “competence” it is the CSJ who should be in charge.
Central America
Guatemala swears in new attorney general after controversial exit of Consuelo Porras
The new Attorney General of Guatemala, Gabriel García Luna, officially took office on Sunday and pledged to restore public confidence in the institution while strengthening efforts against corruption and organized crime.
“Today does not mark the beginning of just another administration. Today marks an opportunity to restore dignity to Guatemala’s criminal justice system,” said García Luna, who was appointed by President Bernardo Arévalo.
García Luna succeeds Consuelo Porras, whose tenure began in 2018 and became highly controversial due to accusations of undermining democratic institutions and obstructing anti-corruption investigations.
Porras was sanctioned by the United States, the European Union, Canada, and the United Kingdom, among others, over allegations related to corruption and interference in judicial processes.
Her administration was also criticized for allegedly attempting to block President Arévalo’s inauguration in 2024 and for pursuing legal actions against former anti-mafia prosecutors, judges, journalists, and Indigenous leaders, many of whom later went into exile.
During his inauguration speech, García Luna acknowledged that many Guatemalans had lost trust in the Attorney General’s Office.
“For years, many Guatemalans lost confidence in the institution, not because they stopped believing in justice, but because justice stopped believing in them. Today begins the duty to restore that trust,” he stated.
The new attorney general also admitted he inherited an institution “with deep wounds.”
The United States has accused Porras of obstructing anti-corruption investigations to protect political allies and secure political favors.
Critics argue that such actions benefited the so-called “pact of the corrupt,” an alleged network of political, economic, and criminal interests believed to exert influence over Guatemala’s justice system.
Central America
Mulino Vows Tougher Crackdown as Homicides Increase in Panama
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino said Thursday that his administration will not negotiate with gangs in an attempt to curb the wave of violence that has recently shaken the country and fueled growing public concern over insecurity.
“I am not going to sit down, nor is the security minister going to sit down with the leader of any gang to negotiate,” Mulino stated while rejecting any possibility of dialogue with criminal organizations.
According to statistics from the Public Ministry of Panama, the country recorded 62 homicides in April, nearly double the 34 reported during the same month last year. In March, authorities registered 53 killings, representing a 20% increase compared to the same period in 2025.
Panamanian authorities say the country’s two main gangs, among more than 180 criminal organizations identified nationwide, are behind the recent escalation in violence.
The National Police of Panama stated that disputes over territorial control, recruitment of new members, and drug theft between rival gangs are driving the increase in murders and armed attacks.
Mulino also expressed concern about innocent civilians becoming victims of the violence.
“They are in restaurants, they are in schools, and they become victims of these shootings,” the president said.
The Panamanian leader further called for tougher judicial measures against gang leaders and drug trafficking operators, criticizing court decisions that grant house arrest to suspects linked to contract killings and organized crime.
“We are going to act as we must to defend the overwhelming majority of Panamanian citizens, who are not criminals and are not drug traffickers,” Mulino stated.
Authorities believe that rising cocaine production in South America and Panama’s role as a transit route for drugs destined for the United States and Europe continue to strengthen gangs involved in narcotics trafficking.
Central America
Arévalo Announces Overhaul of Guatemala’s Prison System Amid Security Crisis
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo said Thursday that his administration is working on a major transformation of the country’s prison system in an effort to end what he described as a “feast of corruption” inside Guatemala’s jails.
Speaking during an official ceremony in which Guatemala received 20 new inmate transport vehicles with support from the United States and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), Arévalo stressed that prisons must no longer remain under the control of criminal organizations.
“Prisons should not be places where crime is perfected, but places where rehabilitation becomes possible,” the president said during his speech.
Arévalo explained that the addition of the new vehicles will strengthen security, surveillance, and operational control within the penitentiary system, which is considered one of the most overcrowded in the region.
Guatemala’s prisons currently hold more than 25,000 inmates in facilities originally designed for approximately 7,000 people, representing overcrowding levels exceeding 300%. Authorities acknowledge that these conditions have enabled gangs and criminal groups to coordinate extortion schemes, murders, and other crimes from inside prison facilities.
The crisis reached one of its most critical moments in January, when government attempts to regain control of several prisons triggered riots in three detention centers across the country.
Following the operations, members of the Barrio 18 gang allegedly carried out armed attacks in different areas of the country, leaving 11 officers from Guatemala’s National Civil Police dead.
Guatemala swears in new attorney general after controversial exit of Consuelo Porras
Mulino Vows Tougher Crackdown as Homicides Increase in Panama
Arévalo Announces Overhaul of Guatemala’s Prison System Amid Security Crisis
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