Guatemala: Anti-Corruption Group Urges Revamp of Justice System

Members of the Guatemalan Citizen's Front Against Corruption, which includes civil society, indigenous leaders, lawmakers and others, have called on the country's authorities to re-order the justice system to tackle its current flaws.

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"Bringing order to the justice system is one of the pillars in the fight against corruption and impunity, and for that reason, all responsible bodies must fully exercise their obligations, stick to the legal framework and denounce those who obstruct the processes," the organization noted in a statement.

The front expressed its concern that a "comprehensive approach to the different and serious problems that are affecting the judicial system" is not being carried out and highlighted "long lapses" that characterize several legal cases as one issue.

To combat this problem, the group called on the judicial system to address issues such as the "limited" number of judges, "interminable legal actions" that result in even more interminable delays, the persecution of "good judges and magistrates," as well as legal consultants and attorneys devoid of ethics.

In their opinion, some lawyers "manipulate the (judicial) system, making it even more congested” by interjecting, for example, "malicious" resources.

As the situation had become "more evident" in recent weeks, the front requested that something be done to resuscitate a "system in collapse."

While the document made no explicit mention of changes that should be implemented, it was released after the death of former congressman Manuel Barquin this week. He was being held in pre-trial detention on corruption charges since 2017. The justice system had repeatedly denied him legal resources to appeal the case.

Barquin's family, along with some congressmen, denounced that his human rights had been violated.