Progress and setbacks in anti-impunity efforts in Northern Triangle
Guatemala’s former president Alvaro Colom (2008-2012) was arrested last week, becoming the country’s fourth leader to be accused of corruption by the United Nations-backed anti-impunity commission in Guatemala (Cicig) and the attorney general’s office (AG). Two days later, Juan Jiménez Mayor, a former prime minister of Peru, quit as head of the Mission for Support against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (Maccih), sponsored by the Organization of American States (OAS). Jiménez cited frustration with the lack of local political will to combat corruption, as well as differences with OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro. With Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales continuing to signal discomfort with Cicig’s presence in the country, the developments again illustrate the endemic nature of corruption in the sub-region and the considerable challenges in seeking to address it.