Central America

Elections leave a fragmented Congress in Guatemala

Photo: Palacio Legislativo

June 27 |

With 99 percent of the tables counted, the voting trend in Guatemala last Sunday already marks the names of the deputies that will make up the Tenth Legislature and leave a Congress without clear and sufficient majorities for who will be the next president.

The until now official party, Vamos, will be the main force in Congress after obtaining 39 deputies (out of 160), while the second force will be the National Unity of Hope (UNE) with 28 deputies, followed by the Seed Movement, which will occupy 23 seats.

In addition to the elected deputies, there is a list of candidates who did not achieve victory and among them there are several well-known names such as former president Jimmy Morales, former minister Enrique Degenhart, current deputy Patricia Sandoval and former deputy Fernando Linares Beltranena.

According to local media, the strategy of the still official Vamos party of “taking advantage of public resources to carry out political clientelism, allying itself with the majority of the country’s mayors and strengthening its structure in Congress with deputies from parties such as the Union of National Change (UCN) paid off in these elections”.

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Among the deputies repeating with Vamos is Allan Rodríguez, whose brother, Luis Alberto Rodríguez will also be a deputy. Shirley Rivera, current president of Congress was also reelected.

Meanwhile, Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza (UNE) notably reduced its number of legislators, going from 52 elected in 2019 to around 27 it will have after these elections.

Bernardo Arévalo, from the Semilla party, will dispute the presidency together with Torres. The political grouping will be the third force in Congress, with around 22 legislators.

In turn, Edmond Mulet’s party will have 18 legislators, while a total of 13 groups will add between one and nine legislators, among which are Valor, of candidate Zury Ríos and Visión Con Valores (Viva), which was supported by former President Alfonso Portillo. His ex-wife Evelyn Morataya will repeat as deputy.

The results of the elections for the Central American Parliament (Parlacen) also show that at least eight parties will be able to place at least one deputy, out of the 20 deputies to be elected for this regional body, headed equally by Vamos.

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Central America

Analyst questions IACHR role over report on El Salvador emergency measures

Political analyst Óscar Martínez Peñate on Tuesday called for a review of the role currently played by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), arguing that it has undermined its credibility by hosting the presentation of a report critical of El Salvador.

Speaking during the interview program Panorama, Martínez questioned the commission’s decision to accept a report prepared by the Grupo Internacional de Expertas y Expertos para la Investigación de Violaciones de Derechos Humanos en El Salvador, which examines alleged human rights violations under the country’s state of emergency.

“We should examine what the current role of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is. How is it possible that they agree to host the presentation of a report whose premise is against a State, a government, a political system, and Salvadoran society?” Martínez said.

He added that by allowing the presentation of the report, the commission “automatically disqualifies itself.”

Martínez also questioned whether it is appropriate for the IACHR to serve as a “platform” for what he described as the defense of criminals, by treating the GIPES report as credible.

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According to the analyst, the commission is acting in a way that contradicts its mandate by enabling narratives that, in his view, go against Salvadoran society.

Central America

El Salvador destroys $166 million worth of cocaine seized from Tanzanian vessel

A total of 6,606 kilograms of cocaine, valued at more than $166.1 million, were destroyed on Tuesday in an operation led by the Fiscalía General de la República, in coordination with the Policía Nacional Civil, the Superintendencia de Regulación Sanitaria, and the Cuerpo de Bomberos de El Salvador.

The drugs had been seized on February 13 by the Naval Task Force Tridente of the Salvadoran Navy aboard a vessel flying the flag of Tanzania.

Authorities reported that the ship was intercepted approximately 380 nautical miles southwest of the Salvadoran coast. On board were 10 individuals of different nationalities: four Colombians, three Nicaraguans, two Panamanians, and one Ecuadorian.

The detainees were identified as Colombians Luis Enrique Rodelo Osorio, Antonio José Ángulo Narváez, Mario Alonso Pérez Hernández, and Miguel Antonio Galeano Ariaza; Nicaraguans José Martín Cerda Cea, Roberto Adolfo Díaz, and Francisco Javier García Duval; Panamanians Yareth Sanir Carr Garcés and Vicente Ramos; and Ecuadorian José Ramiro Valencia.

According to the Prosecutor’s Office, following the initial hearing, the Tribunal Primero Contra el Crimen Organizado de San Salvador ordered that the suspects remain in custody while the investigation continues, and authorized the destruction of the seized drugs.

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International

Trump Says Iran Is Welcome at 2026 World Cup but Warns of Security Concerns

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, said Thursday that the national football team of Iran is “welcome” to participate in the 2026 World Cup, although he suggested it might be safer for the team not to take part in the tournament.

“The Iranian national soccer team is welcome at the World Cup, but I really don’t think it’s appropriate for them to be there, for their own safety,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

His comments came a day after Iran’s sports minister, Ahman Donyamali, said that there are currently no conditions for the country to participate in the tournament following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, during a military offensive launched on February 28 by Israel and the United States.

“After the corrupt government killed our leader, there are no conditions that allow us to take part in the World Cup,” the Iranian official said. He added that the country has faced two wars in the past eight or nine months, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths, making participation in the tournament unlikely.

On Tuesday, the president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, met with Trump at the White House.

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Following the meeting, Infantino said that Trump reiterated that Iran’s national team would be allowed to compete in the FIFA World Cup 2026.

“We discussed the current situation in Iran and the fact that the Iranian team has qualified to participate in the FIFA World Cup 2026. During the conversation, President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States,” Infantino wrote on Instagram.