Caribbean & Central America - August 2017 (ISSN 1741-4458)

President Jimmy Morales announced this month that he was ending a state of emergency decreed in May in Ixchiguán and Tajumulco municipalities, San Marcos department. The decree had been declared in response to violence linked to both a decades-old land dispute and turf war in the area which is used to cultivate opium poppy [SSR-17-06]. While the conservative Frente de Convergencia Nacional (FCN-Nación) government has unveiled various initiatives aimed at boosting productive development in the area, and drawn up a bill which sets out new boundaries, it remains to be seen how far this will ultimately go in ending the unrest.

After President Morales declared the state of emergency in May (subsequently extended in June and July), some 1,040 military officials, 1,200 police (PNC) officers, and 450 anti-drugs officials were deployed to the area with the declared aim of recovering State control. As part of efforts to resolve long-running tensions between the two municipalities, which date back to 1933 following the creation of Ixchiguán as a municipality, on 24 May representatives from local communities, along with officials from the land registry office, the national geographic institute (IGN), and the human rights ombudsman (PDH), began a process of demarcating boundaries in the area. This has since provided the basis for the government to draw up a legislative bill aimed at setting out these limits once and for all which was sent down to the 158-member unicameral legislature in early August and which, at the time of writing, had yet to be approved.

As well as announcing the legislative bill, the government, which confirmed on 7 August that it would not be extending the state of emergency, has unveiled other initiatives aimed at quelling the tensions. These include proposals to offer technical training courses to create cooperatives in the area, with support from national technical institute of training and productivity (Intecap) and the economy ministry (Mineco), which would advise on accessing new markets. Mineco has also promised 100 new jobs for residents of Ixchiguán and Tajumulco municipalities while the government has announced US$250,000 will go on promoting productive community projects.

As part of efforts to boost agriculture in the area (as an alternative to growing illicit crops), on 3 August the agriculture ministry (Maga) announced that it would hand over 120 submersible irrigation pumps to 120 families in Tajumulco. It has also announced the launch of a new project to store rain water to benefit 200 families along with plans to implement 1,500 micro irrigation systems. Meanwhile Health Minister Lucrecia Hernández Mack on 7 August pledged to increase the number of health care professionals in the area, telling reporters that, in September, three clinics would be overhauled in Ixchiguán and five in Tajumulco. The social development ministry (Mides) has announced that those who do not receive social assistance will receive a food security hand-out worth Q1,500.

Congress fails to ratify another decree

The national legislature has ratified President Morales’ decree with regard to the two municipalities on three occasions. However, it refused to provide the necessary votes for a decree that he announced on 17 July invoking a 30-day state of public calamity. The move, which he said was necessary to address the collapse of the country’s road infrastructure, would have suspended procedures under the public procurement & state contracting law. At the time that he announced the decree, the communications, infrastructure, and housing ministry (Micivi) also revealed plans to purchase machines and equipment, with the military to provide assistance in tasks such as repairing potholes. President Morales made his announcement three days after the United Nations (UN)-backed anti-impunity commission in Guatemala (Cicig) and attorney general’s office (AG) revealed another massive corruption scandal, this time involving a criminal network (see box) led by Alejandro Sinibaldi a former head (2012-2014) of the Micivi, who served under disgraced former president Otto Pérez Molina (Partido Patriota [PP] 2012-2015), himself forced to resign in 2015 over corruption.

Congress however rejected the decree on 20 July by 67-37 votes, with deputies from the main opposition Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza (UNE) party, and the also opposition Todos, claiming that it was not appropriate as a state of calamity should be only used in cases of natural disasters or catastrophes. President Morales also announced that he will present two legal initiatives to congress – one to reform the law on public procurement & state contracting and the other to liquidate those construction companies with outstanding legal issues.

Micivi scandal

On 14 July Cicig’s chief, Iván Velásquez, and other top officials revealed details of the corruption network led by Sinibaldi, for which so far 17 people have been arrested. Arrest warrants are out for 15 others, including Sinibaldi, whose whereabouts are unknown.

Velásquez made his announcement after some 40 raids were carried out in the departments of Guatemala, Sacatepéquez, and Izabal. The investigation, which is divided into four planks (business carried out by Micivi, money laundering, illicit electoral finance, and obstructing justice), found that Sinibaldi had allegedly created a series of shell companies to launder money that he collected in bribes from construction companies contracted by the Micivi, some of which was allegedly used to illegally finance the 2011 and 2015 PP electoral campaigns.

• Progress report

In its most recent progress report (issued on 10 July), Guatemala’s security ministry (Minseg) reported that, in 49 days of operations in San Marcos department, security forces had destroyed more than 260m opium poppy plants, spanning 527,109 hectares worth Q6.5bn (US$887m), in seven municipalities in the area.

• New human rights ombudsman

On 19 July Guatemala’s 158-member unicameral legislature elected Jordán Rodas Andrade, a lawyer, as the country’s new human rights ombudsman (PDH) to replace Jorge de León Duque whose five-year term is due to end in August. Rodas, who received 131 votes, has highlighted as his priorities the need to address chronic malnutrition, health, insecurity, and conflict.