Members of the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee presented a resolution calling for the peaceful transfer of power to President-elect Bernardo Arévalo.
With this, the Government of Guatemala is urged to prioritize and work actively to guarantee the peaceful transfer of power and move forward with the inauguration of the President-elect on January 14.
The senators who introduced the resolution are led by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin, along with Dick Durbin, Tim Kaine, Jeff Merkley, LaFonza Butler and Peter Welch.
“The people of Guatemala cast their vote in a free and fair presidential election. They deserve to have their voices heard and respected. The government of Guatemala must respect the will of the people and allow the peaceful transfer of power to President-elect Arévalo,” Cardin explains.
stop sanctions
The proposed resolution, among other things, calls on the State Department, the Treasury Department, and the Agency for International Development (USAID) to prepare for the possibility that the change in command will not occur peacefully.
They call for reevaluating all elements of U.S. bilateral foreign assistance and cooperation with the Guatemalan government.
In addition, they also state that all diplomatic and economic tools should be evaluated, including sanctions that could be used to hold accountable Guatemalan public officials, private sector actors, and others who contributed to the infection. Have supported or made efforts to stop. Power.
asked to reduce the fine
The resolution also calls on the government to commute the sentences of journalist José Rubén Zamora and former prosecutor Virginia Lapra. “And end intimidation and threats against all actors working to reduce corruption in Guatemala.”,