Corruption, Crisis, and CICIG: What Next for the Rule of Law in Guatemala?

On Friday, August 31, military jeeps surrounded CICIG headquarters in Guatemala City as President Jimmy Morales announced he would not renew the mandate of the UN’s signature anti-graft body. Established in 2007 to support and strengthen Guatemala’s legal institutions, CICIG worked with local prosecutors to expose corruption at the highest levels of the country’s political institutions. Morales’ decision to end CICIG’s mandate provoked nationwide protests, and his subsequent refusal to obey a Constitutional Court order to permit CICIG chief Ivan Velásquez to return to the country threatens to trigger a full blown democratic crisis. What is motivating Morales’ actions, and what are the implications for Guatemala’s democratic institutions and investment climate? What impact has CICIG had on rule of law in Guatemala, and what would the country look like without it? What could happen next, and how will the United States respond?

To discuss these questions and others, the Inter-American Dialogue is pleased to partner with the Council of the Americas to host “Corruption and Crisis in Guatemala: The Past, Present, and Future of CICIG.”

Follow this event on Twitter at #CICIGcrisis and @The Dialogue.

Welcome

Michael Shifter

President, Inter-American Dialogue (@MichaelShifter)

Eric Farnsworth

Vice President, Council of the Americas (@ericfarns)

Speakers

Eduardo Stein

Former Vice President of Guatemala

Connie de Paiz

Vice President of the Guatemalan Exporters’ Association, and Director for the Center for Corporate Social Responsibility Action in Guatemala (CentraRSE) (@conniedepaiz)

Rachel Samrén

Executive Vice President, Millicom (@RachelSamren)

Eric Jacobstein

Senior Policy Advisor, House Committee on Foreign Affairs (@EAJ1980)

Moderator

Michael Camilleri

Director, Peter D. Bell Rule of Law Program, Inter-American Dialogue (@camillerimj)

 

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