ONLINE EVENT: Victims of their own Success? The Lessons of Anti-Impunity Missions in Central America

Over the past decade, high-profile anti-impunity missions in Central America offered great promise and concrete progress in combating corruption and impunity in countries characterized by weak rule of law. These hybrid bodies—the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), the Mission to Support the Fight against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (MACCIH), and the incipient International Commission against Impunity in El Salvador (CICIES)—represent innovative collaborations between national and international institutions. However, the success of CICIG and MACCIH prompted high-level backlash, leading to their disbandment in the past year.  

What did CICIG and MACCIH achieve, and what lessons should we learn from their experience? What is the status of CICIES, and what are the prospects for future anti-impunity commissions? Where does the Northern Triangle stand in combating corruption, particularly in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic?  

To discuss these questions and more, the Inter-American Dialogue and the Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS) at American University are pleased to present “Victims of their own Success? The Lessons of Anti-Impunity Missions in Central America.” This event is part of ongoing work by CLALS to analyze the legacies and lessons of hybrid anti-impunity missions, which has produced recent reports on CICIG and MACCIH.

Follow this event on Twitter at #AntiImpunityMissions, @The_Dialogue, and @AU_CLALS. 

We invite participants to submit questions using the Q&A function in Zoom, the event hashtag on Twitter OR to email questions to meetings@thedialogue.org.

OPENING REMARKS:

MICHAEL CAMILLERI

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

SPEAKERS:

CHARLES T. CALL

Associate Professor, School of International Service, American University (@call4pax)

MARTHA DOGGETT

Former Director of the Americas Division, UN Department of Political Affairs

JUAN GONZALEZ

Senior Fellow, Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, and former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State (@Cartajuanero)

CLAUDIA ESCOBAR

Centennial Fellow, Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University

MODERATOR:

ERIC HERSHBERG

Director, Center for Latin American & Latino Studies, American University

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