Guatemala City (AFP) – A United Nations human rights expert warned Friday of intensifying persecution of independent judges, lawyers and others fighting corruption in Guatemala, urging its contentious attorney general to stop "criminalization."
The United States and the European Union have sanctioned top public prosecutor Consuelo Porras for graft and undermining democracy, whiled President Bernardo Arevalo has accused her of seeking to overthrow him.
During a visit to Guatemala, Margaret Satterthwaite, UN special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, warned of growing persecution of independent judges, prosecutors, lawyers, journalists and others.
"The instrumental use of criminal law by the prosecutor general's office appears to amount to a systematic pattern of intentional and severe deprivation of fundamental rights, targeted at specific groups," she said in a statement.
"This persecution appears to be intensifying, as those who have sought to end impunity and corruption, defend human rights, or speak out against abuses of power increasingly face digital harassment, threats, and criminal charges," Satterthwaite added.
The UN expert, who is mandated by the UN Human Rights Council, but who does not speak on behalf of the United Nations, called on Porras's office to "halt its process of criminalization."
Satterthwaite met with civil society and Indigenous groups, judicial officials and legislators, as well as both Arevalo and Porras during her visit.
"I did hear people who are afraid," she said as she presented her initial findings at a news conference.
"Criminalization is terrifying. It's something that no one wants to experience," she said.
After meeting Satterthwaite last week, Porras said that her office "investigates" and "does not criminalize."
But the UN expert said the "facts point to a very different reality."
"Criminalization operates through a set of identifiable actions, involving the public prosecutor's office, members of the judiciary, and often certain private actors," Satterthwaite added.
Arevalo's anti-corruption crusade helped to seal his August 2023 election but also put him in the crosshairs of prosecutors themselves accused of graft.
The former lawmaker, diplomat and sociologist has repeatedly denounced a "slow-motion coup d'etat" and unsuccessfully tried to remove Porras.