SHARMINI PERIES, EXEC. PRODUCER, TRNN: Welcome to the Real News Network. I'm Sharmini Peries
coming to you from Baltimore.
In Guatemala after months of protests against government corruption, in particular a case
of siphoning millions of dollars from customs contracts, President Otto Pérez Molina resigned
on Thursday, citing that he needs to deal with his personal situation. A new interim
government has already been sworn in. Apart from all of this, Guatemalans will be heading
to the polls on Sunday for a general election.
Now joining me to discuss all of this is Andrea Ixchíu. She is an indigenous Maya K'iche
human rights activist and journalist from Guatemala. She works with the Guatemalan independent
media outlet Prensa Communitaria. Andrea, thank you so much for joining us today.
ANDREA IXCHIU: Hello. Thanks for the space to talk about Guatemala's situation.
PERIES: So Andrea, describe the events that led to the resignation of the president.
IXCHIU: Well, there has been many. Especially because on April 25 the International Commission
Against Impunity, its seat which was based in Guatemala since 2008, present with, along
with the general attorney, investigation that implicates General Otto Pérez Molina, ex-president
of Guatemala, that was involved in a corruption scandal that he and part of his government
were all part of a criminal structure named Line. It has stolen, the money for the incoming
taxes and also for the incoming importations in Guatemala. And stolen the money from immigration
officers, and also duty.
PERIES: Customs office, I understand.
IXCHIU: Yes, customs office.
PERIES: Now, I know that there's been massive protests. A big one culminating last week
with hundreds of thousands of people demonstrating, calling for his resignation and the resignation
of the government. But who was actually responsible for bringing this case forward, and also forcing
and putting so much pressure on him to resign?
IXCHIU: Well, it is the investigation and trial that the International Commission Against
Impunity in Guatemala started along with the attorney. That investigation was the one that
bring him to court. And it was also moved by the pressure of the protests and the demonstrations
on the streets. But it's basically the investigation and the prosecution of the International Commission
Against Impunity in Guatemala.
PERIES: So the pressure that the people on the streets brought about compiled with the
investigation of the commission. This is a real example of democracy at work. Also, give
us a sense of the former role that General Molina had played in the 36-year civil war
that Guatemala experienced. Many organizations point to his role in the brutality in that
civil war, but others credit him for actually being a negotiator and bringing about an end
to the civil war. What are your thoughts on that?
IXCHIU: Well, I can say that as a young indigenous woman that part of the story that I already
know is he is part of this criminal structure inside the military forces that committed
the genocide against my communities. We know that he's responsible for several massacres
in the '80s. But also in his recent period as president in Guatemala we have been living
through another kind of criminalization, persecution, and also new massacres against indigenous
communities. In [inaud.] of 2012, there was a massacre against my community in the Totonicapán
highlands, Guatemala, when thousands of people were blocking a road and protesting against
new laws that the government of Otto Pérez Molina were trying to improve.
So there's a lot of pressure and there's a lot of movement along Otto Pérez Molina's
resignation. The movements on the streets wouldn't be that huge if the indigenous and
campesinos communities were not gone along together with the urban and middle class movement,
and that's because indigenous communities have been struggling for these past three
years that make him--and put Otto Pérez Molina into a [corner] because of the massacres committed
in the '80s, because of the massacre that he committed in 2012. So there's a mixture
of stuff.
I can't say that he's a general of the [peace], or that his role in the negotiations were
important, because now we see the facts that he was all the time part of this criminal
structure named La Linea, and also he is also responsible for the human rights violations
during the civil war.
PERIES: And now is there any part of the legal process that's underway that's going to hold
him accountable for any of that activity during the civil war?
IXCHIU: Well, when the genocide case was ended we have a lot of people that when they testified,
they pointed at him. Also there's another North American journalist investigator, and
also part of a commission of journalists that came to Guatemala in the early '80s that have
a lot of proof about his participation in the massacres, as [inaud.] as you know. So
they pointed at him. We have a lot of documentation. I'm not really sure right now if any community
has already started the process against him because of the massacres in the '80s. But
yes, there's a case open against his government because of the massacre in the Totonicapán
in October, 2012.
So we have seen that these military forces have always been persecuting the indigenous
communities, and Otto Pérez Molina is part of this structure. So we can expect in the
future that more cases against him can be opened.
PERIES: And in the Sunday's elections coming up, Andrea, is there any hope in terms of
the candidates that are running? And whether there is a more democratic government that
could come into play.
IXCHIU: In this moment and in this condition there is no possibility that a democratic
election can be done. We can see corrupt candidates from the parties that are leading this election.
We're really worried about that, because we cannot find any possibility in the actual
political parties to find alternatives to have a choice to pick on Sunday. And that's
why a lot of the civil society organizations are calling together along to not participate
in these elections. But also there's this big worry about the new president and the
new government. None of the candidates are now running for the presidency can give us
any security that we can have good politicians and people that can lead the institutions
in this crisis. That's what we're really worried about.
We are expecting that the government, especially the Congress, and also the Tribunal Supremo
Electoral, which is the institution that leads the elections, can suspend the election on
Sunday because we have seen how political parties are, will put in threats against communities,
pushing them to vote for them. Also condition [aid] in their participation, for developing
programs in communities. So that's not democracy. That's some sort of dictatorship. And that's
what we do not want, and that's why also the mobilizations and demonstrations are marching
on the streets asking not just to change the political parties. We want to change the rules
to make politics in Guatemala.
PERIES: Andrea, thank you so much for joining us today.
IXCHIU: Thanks for the space to talk about Guatemala.
PERIES: And thank you for joining us on the Real News Network.