While the results of the election are now known, with a landslide win for Bernardo Arévalo, fears for democracy in Guatemala have not simply gone away as state actors in support of corruption remain powerful. Jody García wrote in The… Read More ›
Jody García
‘Simulation of democracy’: Guatemala readies for election amid concerns of manipulation
Candidates have been disqualified on spurious grounds as experts warn of country backsliding into autocracy Nina Lakhani and Jody García write in The Guardian about the manipulation and corruption being carried out prior to this weekend’s presidential elections in Guatemala…. Read More ›
In This Election, Some Candidates Lost Before a Single Vote Was Cast
Guatemala’s first round of elections on Sunday is as much about who’s not on the ballot as who is, after courts barred leading candidates from running. Simon Romero, Natalie Kitroeff and Jody García write in The New York Times about… Read More ›
Top corruption prosecutor held in jail as Guatemalan elite bids to purge foes
Jody García and Nina Lakhani wrote in The Guardian, recently, on the case of Virginia Laparra, a leading senior anti-corruption prosecutor in Guatemala and the use of what is termed ‘lawfare’ being waged against anti-corruption members of the judiciary by… Read More ›
Guatemala Sentences Former Fighters to 30 Years in Prison for Rape
Oscar Lopez and Jody García write, in the New York Times, about the Achi Women Case and the sentences handed down within the context of a corrupt judiciary and the likelihood of real justice being denied as time moves on…. Read More ›
María Choc: life between awaiting trial and a state of siege
The Q’eqchi’ human rights defender has been waiting for three years for her legal situation to be resolved. Her situation is aggravated in a context of restriction of rights caused by a state of siege. Jody García writes in la… Read More ›
Biden Faces a Trade-Off: Stop Corruption, or Migration?
President Biden promised to attack corruption in Central America head on, but that goal has taken a back seat to cooperating on stopping migrants from the region. Natalie Kitroeff writes in the New York Times about the challenges facing anti-corruption… Read More ›
Sepur Zarco: The Fight For Justice Continues
Based on information from Mujeres Transformando el Mundo, La Cuerda, through Jody García, has presented an infographic on the continuing fight for justice with regard to the Sepur Zarco case. Any errors in translation are mine. Five years ago, a… Read More ›
David vs Goliath in Guatemala: how palm oil companies encroach on indigenous land
A community in northern Guatemala is fighting against the force of nature and against the expansion of palm oil. Jody García writes in Climate Tracker about a community that is increasingly trapped, literally, by the effects of climate change, on… Read More ›
Judge who protected the son of Jimmy Morales will decide the future of Erika Aifán
The Supreme Court of Justice agreed to process a preliminary judgment against Judge Erika Aifán. The complaint was filed by Wilber Castellanos, known to have been in contact with Gustavo Alejos, currently in jail. What does the resolution say? What… Read More ›
Guatemala Solidarity Network 