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August 28, 2017

Guatemalan High Court Blocks President from Expelling Head of U.N. Anti-Graft Unit
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In Guatemala, protesters poured into the streets of Guatemala City on
Sunday to protest against corruption, amid a standoff between Guatemalan
President Jimmy Morales and the highest court over whether Morales could
expel the head of a U.N. anti-corruption taskforce.

President Morales ordered the expulsion of Ivan Velasquez, the head of
the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala, on
Sunday-only days after the commission said the president should be
investigated for illegal campaign financing. Only hours later,
Guatemala's constitutional court suspended the president's order. This
is protester Patricia de Leon.

Patricia de Leon: "The problem the president has is not just the
allegations against him and his family. He is a president who has not
carried out his duties in these two years, and the people of Guatemala
are sick of so much poverty, of so much corruption, highways you can't
use, children who are malnourished. And there has been no position from
this government. Morales is a clown, a buffoon and corrupt."

President Morales, a former comedian, took office in 2016 after massive
anti-corruption protests ousted the now-jailed former President Otto
Pérez Molina, who is also formerly a U.S.-backed military leader during
Guatemala's dirty wars.


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