International
Guatemala concludes key election of the 13 members of the Supreme Court for the next five years
The deputies of the Guatemalan Congress elected this Thursday the new 13 members of the Supreme Court of Justice (CSJ) for the period 2024-2029, a transcendental designation for the fight against corruption in the Central American country.
The Guatemalan congressmen reached the necessary consensus to elect the new members of the Supreme Court 10 days before the deadline established in the law to define the substitutes of the current magistrates expired.
“Congress has made its decision and chosen the new magistrates of the Supreme Court of Justice. Each deputy must take responsibility for his vote,” said the president of Guatemala, Bernardo Arévalo de León, in a message on the social network X after concluding the election.
Regain confidence in justice
The president recalled that “in the hands of the new CSJ is to fulfill the commitment that the people of Guatemala demand: to recover confidence in justice, respect for human rights and the frontal fight against impunity.”
“Beyond speculation, we need to see his vocation for justice in concrete facts. Never again courts that are not at the service of democracy, the rule of law and the construction of a better future,” he concluded.
Among the elected candidates stands out the re-election of three current magistrates of the Supreme Court of Justice, headed by Gustavo Adolfo Morales Duarte, who in 2020 accused himself of participating in the rigging of the election of courts that year.
When the election of the magistrates ended, opposition deputies, such as Allan Rodríguez, with complaints of corruption, celebrated with applause and shouts the election of the magistrates.
“Despite the fact that the ruling party allied itself with organized crime, that yesterday they distributed money, that there was a list of vetoed by the embassy, despite the fact that there were pressures against deputies (…), today Guatemala won,” Rodríguez, who did not prove his accusations, told the press.
According to the deputy, it is a “balanced Supreme Court, not all with the same ideology, but it doesn’t matter, it’s professional people, who have demonstrated their ability, many of them magistrates with experience.”
The new magistrates of the Supreme Court of Guatemala
The new Supreme Court magistrates are: Carlos Lucero Paz, Claudia Paredes Castañeda, Gustavo Morales Duarte, Jenny Alvarado Tení, Igmaín García Pimentel, Flor Gálvez Barrios, Carlos Contreras Valenzuela, Flor García Villatoro, Clemen Juárez Midence, Teodulo Cifuentes Maldonado, Estuardo Cardenas, Luis Conrado Campos and René Girón Palacios.
The process of electing magistrates of the Guatemalan Supreme Court has been under the international magnifying glass, of entities such as the Organization of American States (OAS), due to the current deterioration of the country’s judicial system, reflected in cases of political persecution against journalists, prosecutors and activists.
According to the OAS, as well as international organizations such as Impunity Watch or Human Rights Watch (HRW), this Supreme Court election process was vital for “the rescue of Guatemala’s justice system.”
Members of the official bench, consulted by EFE during the vote, indicated that the election ended with “questionable” candidates elected and with others without precedents that this faction supported them for their integration.
Between 2014 and 2019, investigations were carried out on the rigging of court elections through the intervention of political operators, such as former ministers and presidential candidates who sought to place their relatives in these positions.
International
Ten Bodies Found in Mexico’s Zacatecas State Amid Security Operation
Mexican authorities discovered the bodies of 10 people on Saturday in the central state of Zacatecas, a region that was heavily affected by organized crime violence just a few years ago.
The victims were found in different municipalities across the state, which experienced a surge in violence between 2021 and 2022 as rival criminal groups fought for control of key drug trafficking routes.
Rodrigo Reyes, secretary general of the Zacatecas state government, said on social media that the bodies were located in the municipalities of Morelos, Pánuco, and Sain Alto.
Authorities have not yet disclosed the causes of death or identified those responsible for the killings.
Reyes said security forces have launched a coordinated operation to locate those behind the crimes and strengthen the police presence in the affected areas as the investigation continues.
International
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
The United States has announced new limits on the legal length of stay for foreign students and journalists, marking the latest tightening of immigration policies under President Donald Trump.
The changes, outlined in an administrative rule published on Thursday, are expected to take effect in September, unless Congress blocks the measure.
Under the new policy, holders of student visas will be allowed to remain in the United States for no more than four years.
Foreign journalists will be limited to 240-day stays—approximately eight months—with the possibility of applying for extensions of the same duration.
The policy imposes even stricter rules on Chinese journalists, whose visas will be capped at 90 days.
More than 100 international news organizations and press freedom groups, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), criticized the measure in an open letter, arguing that it would reduce both the quantity and quality of international coverage of events in the United States.
The Republican Party, led by President Trump, currently holds a majority in Congress and has pledged to curb both illegal immigration and certain forms of legal immigration.
Previously, the United States generally issued student visas for the full duration of an academic program, while foreign journalists could receive visas valid for up to five years.
Central America
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
The Nicaraguan government announced on Thursday that it is severing diplomatic relations with Italy following criticism from the Italian government over Nicaragua’s long-standing decision to shelter Alessio Casimirri, a former member of the Red Brigades convicted in Italy for the 1978 kidnapping and murder of former Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani criticized the administration of co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo on Wednesday for continuing to provide refuge to Casimirri, who was sentenced in Italy to six life terms for his role in Moro’s abduction and killing.
In a statement issued Thursday, Nicaragua’s Foreign Ministry said it was ending all diplomatic relations with Italy, describing Tajani’s remarks as “unjustified, aggressive, and irresponsible.”
Tajani made the comments during a gathering of conservative leaders from Europe and Latin America held in Madrid.
“We have absolutely nothing in common with the positions of extremist governments such as Nicaragua, a country that continues to harbor dangerous Red Brigades terrorists like Alessio Casimirri,” Tajani said, according to Italian media.
The diplomatic break marks a new escalation in tensions between the two countries over the decades-old case involving Casimirri, who has lived in Nicaragua for many years despite repeated calls from Italy for his extradition.
Ten Bodies Found in Mexico’s Zacatecas State Amid Security Operation
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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