Guatemala Congress strips electoral judges of immunity in troubled transition

2/12/2023 7:42

        Guatemala's ruling-party-led Congress on Friday stripped four electoral judges accused of fraud of their immunity from prosecution, in a move critics fear is aimed at blocking President-elect Bernardo Arevalo from taking office next month.
        
        The move by Congress is seen as an attempt to appoint judges who oppose Arevalo's election and is the latest in a series of measures that could hinder the transition of power. The moves have sparked international condemnation and nationwide protests.
        
        Arevalo's anti-corruption platform helped spring him to a shock landslide victory in August elections.
        
        Since then, the Guatemalan attorney general's office has investigated Arevalo's political party and the electoral court and has sought to strip Arevalo of immunity, accusing him of complicity in a takeover of the capital's San Carlos University last year.