Central America
Guatemala’s anti-corruption commissioner, Santiago Palomo, says that the State is in a “critical” condition
The anti-corruption commissioner of the Government of Guatemala, Santiago Palomo, assures that the first months in office have been “a roller coaster” after having found a State “in critical conditions” in the face of the indications that between 2 billion and 3 billion dollars were embezzled during the presidency of Alejandro Giammattei (2020-2024).
Palomo, a 29-year-old lawyer graduated from Harvard University (USA), said during an interview with EFE that his first months in the position, appointed by the president, Bernardo Arévalo de León, have been “intense” and comparable to “a roller coaster.”
“We are trying to navigate in an Executive body that we receive in critical conditions. We identify a pattern when chatting with the new ministers and secretaries: they describe it as a dead rat in each drawer that is opened. This is how the conditions in which the Government was assumed are defined,” Palomo explains.
According to experts cited by local and international media, the Government of Giammattei could have embezzled up to 3 billion dollars between 2020 and 2024.
Precisely the Corruption Perception Index of 2023 placed Guatemala in 2023 among the five countries with the most embezzlement of state funds. Only behind Haiti, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Honduras.
Commissioner Palomo says that the corruption found operated under the same pattern. “Relevant financial disbursements from 70% to 90%” for the construction of “public works that are being thrown away, such as schools and roads, whose progress does not exceed 30% or 40%.”
According to the official, “this is how these corruption structures worked in the State, right now they are still trying to operate,” the official remarked.
The Government of Arévalo de León denounced Amelia Flores, former Minister of Health of Giammattei, before the courts of justice on April 4, for anomalies in the purchase of 16 million doses of the Russian Sputnik vaccine, in 2021 for a total amount of 615 million quetzals (79 million dollars).
According to various sources, many of the vaccines never reached the Central American country and others expired before their application.
“The case of vaccines shows that they were willing to pursue their own interests to the detriment of the most sacred thing, which was the health of the population, in the midst of a pandemic. It is a case that reflects how unscrupulous the degree of corruption of the previous Administration became,” says Palomo.
Last week Palomo, along with the Minister of Communications, Jazmín de la Vega, denounced two former officials for a possible fraud in the assignment of contracts to a company for the construction of 14 schools for an amount between 45 and 60 million quetzals (between five and seven million dollars approximately).
The anti-corruption tsar explains that it is up to the Executive Body to detect and prevent cases of corruption from occurring in its Administration. But that is the Public Ministry (Attorney’s Office) that “is responsible for investigating and prosecuting.”
“The Prosecutor’s Office does not have a real commitment to investigate serious cases of corruption,” it is not an ally in the fight against corruption,” which becomes a real challenge, Palomo recognizes, although, he said, the Administration of Arévalo does not intend to stop denouncing the anomalies that are found in the various ministries.
In 2023, the Prosecutor’s Office, led by Consuelo Porras Argueta, tried to stop the electoral victory of Arévalo de León in the general elections through various criminal cases and dozens of governments around the world sanctioned his action, including that of the United States and members of the European Union.
Arévalo de León surprisingly prevailed over the traditional politics of Guatemala thanks to his offer to heal the corruption of the State that has caused a significant democratic deterioration in the last 30 years.
Palomo concludes that assuming the anti-corruption arm of this Government for the next four years is “a great responsibility.” An “opportunity to improve the dignity of the public service.”
Central America
Panama’s president accuses U.S. Embassy official of visa threats amid China tensions
Panama’s President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday accused a U.S. embassy official of threatening to revoke visasfor government officials and civilians amid discussions about the Central American country’s ties with China.
“It’s true, and I have information from several sources, that an official from the embassy is going around threatening to take away visas. That is not consistent with the good relationship I aspire to maintain with the United States,” the president said during his weekly press conference, without naming the U.S. official.
Mulino made the remarks in response to a journalist’s question about alleged pressure from the embassy on lawyers, lawmakers, and ministers in his administration.
“They are free to grant or revoke visas as they see fit, but not by threatening that if you don’t do something, your visa will be taken away. Whether they revoke it or not, I don’t know. But the bilateral problem we cannot ignore is the U.S.-China issue, which ultimately does not benefit Panama,” Mulino said.
He added that Panama should not get involved in disputes between other countries.
“Much less should we accept this kind of pressure, if it exists, to undermine legal certainty regarding contracts or business operations in Panama,” the president stressed. “All I aspire to is respect,” he concluded.
In early September, the U.S. announced a new visa restriction policy targeting Central American citizens with ties to the Chinese Communist Party. In a press release, the U.S. State Department said the country “is committed to countering China’s corrupt influence in Central America and preventing its attempts to subvert the rule of law.”
Central America
Nicaragua grants 2,500-hectare mining concession to chinese firm in protected region
The Nicaraguan government has granted a new open-pit mining concession to the Chinese company Toyar Inversión Minera S.A., covering a total area of 2,500 hectares in the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region, according to an announcement published Thursday in the Official Gazette La Gaceta in Managua.
The Ministry of Energy and Mines authorized the concession for the extraction of metallic and non-metallic mineralsin the area known as “Nuevos Encuentros,” located in the municipality of Nueva Guinea, under a ministerial agreement.
In total, the administration led by Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo — Nicaragua’s co-presidents — has granted more than 20 mining concessions to Chinese companies over the past two years, covering over 500,000 hectares, including some within the San Juan River Biosphere Reserve.
The Fundación del Río, an environmental organization headed by denationalized activist Amaru Ruiz, warned that these concessions violate the Law on the Communal Property Regime of Indigenous Peoples and Ethnic Communities of Nicaragua’s Atlantic Coast.
According to the NGO, the approval of the Environmental Conservation and Sustainable Development Areas Law on May 6 effectively repealed the decree regulating protected areas in the country, weakening environmental safeguards.
Fundación del Río has also denounced the expansion of illegal artisanal mining within the San Juan River Biosphere Reserve, claiming that the new concessions could legalize mining activity in what should remain a protected area.
Meanwhile, Nicaraguan opposition organizations in exile, grouped under the Platform for Unity and Democracy (PUDE), accused the Ortega-Murillo government last week of massively handing over indigenous territories to foreign companies, particularly Chinese investors.
Central America
Guatemala arrests first escaped gang member after Barrio 18 prison break
Guatemala’s Ministry of the Interior confirmed early Monday the arrest of one of the 20 inmates affiliated with the Barrio 18 gang who escaped from prison over the weekend, a situation authorities uncovered after conducting an inmate count.
The detainee, identified as Byron Eduardo Fajardo Revolorio, also known as “Black Demon,” was captured early Monday in the eastern department of Santa Rosa, along with members of his family.
On Sunday, the national prison system reported that 20 inmates were missing following an inspection at the facility. The U.S. government designated Barrio 18 as a terrorist organization in September, citing its role in widespread violence and insecurity across the region.
In a statement, the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala described the mass escape as “completely unacceptable” and urged authorities to swiftly recapture all fugitives.
Interior Minister Francisco Jiménez confirmed to The Associated Press that he had dismissed the director of the National Penitentiary System, Ludin Godínez, as well as the warden of the facility where the escape occurred. Complaints have been filed to determine those responsible.
During a press conference, Jiménez added that nine officials in total were removed from their posts, including directors and deputy directors of the Fraijanes II, Mariscal Zavala, Izabal, and Renovación I prisons.
The minister also warned that, following the U.S. designation of Barrio 18 as a terrorist group, anyone found aiding its members will face prosecution. He announced rewards of up to $20,000 for information leading to the capture of each escaped inmate.
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