The Constitutional Court of Guatemala, the highest body of justice in the Central American country, reversed this Thursday (13) the request for the suspension of the Semilla Movement, the center-left party of presidential candidate Bernardo Arévalo — a candidate who reached a vacancy in the second round alongside former first lady Sandra Torres against all odds.
The court, equivalent to the Federal Supreme Court in Brazil, granted provisional protection to Semilla after a judge gave the electoral body 24 hours to suspend the party, last Wednesday (12).
The decision complies with the party’s request that the judge’s order not affect the holding of the second round, according to the court, but does not “jeopardize the powers of criminal prosecution that are incumbent upon the Public Prosecutor’s Office”. Guatemalan legislation, which prohibits the suspension of a party between the call and the conclusion of a poll.
The attack by the country’s Seventh Criminal Court against the party of the candidate critical of the current president, Alejandro Giammattei, has increased tension among the population and international observers, who see democracy in the country threatened.
