Previously we saw how corruption and incompetence in the health care sector led to the deaths of several Guatemalans. These deaths fueled protests two years ago leading to the eventual resignations and arrests of former president Otto Perez Molina and former vice president Roxana Baldetti.
In March 2017, 41 girls died at a children’s shelter in Guatemala. Their deaths were the results of state weakness brought on by corruption and incompetence. Three human rights officials and two police officers were arrested on Monday. Three of those arrested were charged with manslaughter and abuse of minors, while two were only charged with abuse.
In addition to these five individuals, lawmakers from Convergencia want to hold President Jimmy Morales accountable for the girls’ deaths.
The office also said it was turning to the Supreme Court a request by two opposition lawmakers that President Jimmy Morales be investigated for his role in the tragedy, for having placed unqualified officials into the state body that ran the shelter.
If the court accepts the lawmakers’ petition and believes there is enough evidence for a case against Morales, it would turn the petition to Guatemala’s Congress, where lawmakers would decide whether or not to remove Morales’ immunity from investigation and proceed with a probe against him.
Sandra Moran said that she and her co-legislator “presented a criminal complaint against the president on March 14 for four crimes: abuse of authority, torture, non-compliance of duty and murder.”
