Guatemalan government may suspend liberties under state of emergency

Sunday, May 10, 2009



As part of a declared on Thursday when the first case of H1N1 flu virus was confirmed in Guatemala, President  proposed the suspension of rights guaranteed by the constitution of that country. The state of emergency, which must be ratified or rejected by the by Wednesday, would limit the effect of the articles of the Constitution of Guatemala which provide for the liberties of expression and movement.

Representatives of have criticized the measure, asking whether it is necessary to impose limits on freedom of expression in the country, where the third case of H1N1 was confirmed yesterday. Rosa María de Frade of Bancada Guatemala said,

Roxana Baldetti of  compared President Colom's plan with the calamitous 1993 decision of former President to suspend the constitution in the name of fighting corruption. Bereft of support, President Serrano Elías resigned a week later, taking up exile in Panama.

In a Friday press conference, President Colom insisted on the necessity of the measures:

The state of emergency, if ratified, would dilute the legal force of the rights recognized in Articles 5 and 26 of the Constitution of Guatemala. Article 5 provides that no person may be "persecuted or harassed for their opinions." Article 26 refers to the liberty of movement.