Press Releases
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Violent Protests by FRG Militants Shut Down Guatemala City for Second Day: Police Are Ordered Not to Interfere
July 25, 2003

For immediate release

VIOLENT PROTESTS BY FRG MILITANTS SHUT DOWN GUATEMALA CITY FOR SECOND DAY
POLICE ARE ORDERED NOT TO INTERFERE

Contact: Sarah Aird or Matt Kennis, NISGUA: 202-518-7638
Contact: Phil Anderson or Max Gimbel, GHRC: 202-529-6599

VIOLENT PROTESTS SHUT DOWN GUATEMALA CITY FOR SECOND DAY AS POLICE STAND BY

He said, "Nothing will stop me," and it looks like he meant it. For the second day in a row, violent protesters supporting a Rios Montt presidential candidacy have shut down Guatemala City, attacking press outlets, journalists, and the Constitutional and Supreme Courts. Bused in yesterday morning from around the country by former dictator Efrain Rios Montt's FRG party, rioters have been on the streets protesting a recent decision by the Guatemalan Supreme Court that temporarily prohibits Rios Montt from registering as a presidential candidate while the court makes a final ruling on his eligibility.

The protesters - many of whom were paid, bribed, or otherwise forced to participate - targeted four different areas of the city yesterday including the Supreme Court, Constitutional Court, the press offices of Libre Encuentro and El Periodico, as well as the Supreme Electoral Tribunal. The protesters carried out violent riots with military precision, resulting in the death of one journalist and nearly killing two others. Armed with guns, machetes, sticks, and rocks, many of the rioters have chosen to hide their identity, wearing ski masks and bandanas. Throughout the day, protesters set piles of tires on fire, attempted to take over a number of press and court buildings, and destroyed property - all within eyesight of national police who were often nearby but had been ordered by superiors not to intervene.

Government buildings, stores, human rights offices, and the US embassy remain closed today. This morning the Guatemalan Supreme Court and Constitutional Court were evacuated for the second time in two days.

Civil society organizations accuse the FRG party, President Alfonso Portillo, and Rios Montt for colluding with the protesters, as evidenced by the lack of police response to the ongoing violence. Throughout the protests, FRG leaders have denied having called for, coordinating, or organizing the riots, yet key FRG leaders have been spotted among the mobilization leadership, including the personal secretary of Rios Montt's daughter, congressperson Juan Santa Cruz, and FRG congressional hopeful Mario Morales. Under questioning from the press, Rios Montt admitted that the FRG leadership has played a key role in organizing and coordinating the protests.

Moreover, the protests demonstrate high levels of organization, coordination, and financial backing. Newspaper reports indicate that more than seventy buses were hired to transport protester to Guatemala City. The rioters received full meals, were provided weaponry, and had tires and gasoline regularly delivered to them in cars with missing or covered license plates. Reports indicate some protesters were offered 50 quetzales to participate. According to press reports, protest organizers are using cell phones and other communications equipment of the type used by the Presidential General Staff (EMP), an institution notorious for having committed some of the most egregious human rights abuses during the civil war.

Internationally-renowned human rights defender Helen Mack noted, "The mobilization have been perfectly orchestrated, with such resources and logistics that it's clear the riots can't have been spontaneous."

These events appear to have been orchestrated in order to deflect attention away from the pressing constitutional issues at hand with regard to the presidential candidacy of Rios Montt. The 4-3 decision in the Constitutional Court on July 14, 2003, in favor of allowing him to run for president is an outrage to the victims of the military's "scorched earth" campaign of the early 1980s.

The events of the last two days highlight the Portillo administration's complete disregard for the Peace Accords. Rather than allowing the police to carry out their jobs and ensure the security of the Guatemalan public, the administration ordered the military to carry out a task outside its mandate. Instead of prosecuting Rios Montt for having ordered the genocide of Maya peoples during the civil war as a UN Truth Commission recommended, the administration reinforces the culture of impunity by protecting Montt supporters as they undertake patently illegal activities.

As international human rights organizations, we echo the demands of our Guatemalan colleagues and call upon the Guatemalan government to:

a) Restore order and ensure the safety of all citizens in a manner consistent with the Constitutional and the Peace Accords
b) Carry out the immediate investigation and prosecution of those responsible for instigating, coordinating, organizing, and financing these illegal and violent protests
c) Create the conditions necessary for an open and democratic electoral process that is safe from violence, and respectful of the rule of law
a) Review the legality of the Constitutional Court's decision allowing Rios Montt to run for president in light of the clear and public FRG affiliations of the two supplemental justices.

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