Farmers march against corruption and high food prices

Hundreds of farmers from different departments of Guatemala protested on Wednesday in various parts of the capital to demand that the government keep your campaign promise on the dismissal of the Attorney General and against the high cost of the basic basket.

This is the first peasant demonstration since the President Bernardo Arévalo assumed power in January.

Carrying white flags with the logo of the Peasant Development Committee (CODECA), which called for the protest, hundreds of peasants gathered in front of the National Palace.

Thelma Cabrera, leader of CODECA, said that the Arévalo government prioritizes other sectors and not the most vulnerable and that there are still unresolved demands from the population. She did not rule out further protests.

Arévalo traveled to the department of Chimaltenango, west of the capital, where he supervised the care given to families affected by a landslide caused by the rains and said that government officials would assist the protesters.

Vicenta Jerónimo, a former indigenous congresswoman and one of the historic leaders of CODECA, told The Associated Press that “what we demand from President Arévalo is that he respond to the population. We were in the streets supporting him to take office and we still haven’t seen any changes. The evictions of people from their lands must end, people are left with nothing, without a roof over their heads.”

One of Arévalo’s campaign promises was that when he came to power he would push for the dismissal of Attorney General Consuelo Porras, however, due to several legal challenges the official is still in office and has continued to investigate and prosecute opponents, especially those of the governing party and officials of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE).

In 2023, when Arévalo won the presidency, Porras and the losing politicians of the race led legal actions against Arévalo’s Movimiento Semilla party and TSE officials and employees.

The prosecutor’s office headed by Porras also tried to have electoral fraud declared but was unsuccessful and Arévalo was sworn in as president. The prosecutor’s investigations continue despite the fact that Arévalo and the electoral officials enjoy immunity.

The peasants’ demands also include the resignation of other officials of the Public Ministry, such as the head of the Special Prosecutor’s Office Against Impunity, Rafael Curruchiche, and Judge Fredy Orellana, who are considered to lead structures within the justice system that criminalize political opponents and journalists.

Valerio Méndez, a 60-year-old farmer who came from the municipality of Concepción Tutuapa in the department of San Marcos, bordering Mexico, said he got up early to get to the capital on time to protest.

“We have come from far away, there are people there who do not even have food to eat, there are abusive charges for electricity, we want the president to support us and respond to us,” said Méndez.

Porras, Curruchiche and Orellana were sanctioned by the US government and 40 other countries of the European Union and Canada, which have prevented them from entering their territories, considering that they undermine democracy in Guatemala and hinder the fight against corruption.

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