The European Union (EU) has imposed sanctions on five Guatemalan judicial officials, including the country’s Attorney General, accused of undermining democracy.
The sanctions involve primarily a freeze on their assets within the EU, and a ban on entering the 27-member bloc.
Attorney General Consuelo Porras has been implicated in a plot to seize power, according to newly elected president Bernardo Arévalo. Porras, who spearheaded legal action to thwart Arévalo’s inauguration, rejected a summons from the new president in late January and refused to resign.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, who attended the induction of the new social-democratic president, warned that attempts to bypass the democratic process would not be tolerated by the global community.
Porras was appointed Attorney General in 2018 and reappointed in 2022 by Arevalo’s conservative predecessors. Her mandate is set to expire in 2026.
Since his election in August on an anti-corruption platform, Arévalo’s tenure has been beleaguered by a stream of legal challenges including election cancellations, suspension of his political party, and attempts to remove his political immunity.
These actions have been unequivocally condemned by the United States, the EU, the United Nations, and the Organisation of American States (OAS).
Porras has been categorised as corrupt by the US Department of Justice. Moreover, the US recently banned former president Alejandro Giammattei, a supporter of Porras, from entering the country due to corruption allegations.
