Closely watched selection of Guatemala's new Supreme Court remains flawed, critics say

GUATEMALA CITY — Guatemala’s Congress selected the 13 new justices of the Supreme Court Thursday in a closely observed process that critics say failed to rid the court of the influence of powerful interests.

The disappointing result was nearly assured even before lawmakers’ decision, because the selection committees submitted a list of candidates still riddled with questionable figures.

Observers from the Organization of American States, the United Nations Human Rights office and a commission of independent experts warned before the vote that there had been meddling in the process and threats from the Attorney General’s Office.

President Bernardo Arévalo has attempted to take up the fight against corruption, but he does not have a majority in Congress and is impeded by a justice system that is manipulated by powerful economic and political interests.

“In the hands of the new (Supreme Court of Justice) is compliance with the commitment demanded by the Guatemalan people: to recover confidence in the justice (system), respect human rights and take head on the fight against impunity,” Arévalo wrote on the social platform X after the selection.

Guatemala's Supreme Court handles all sorts of cases but is not the country's highest court. That honor belongs to the Constitutional Court, which can review or overturn Supreme Court decisions.

Ana María Méndez Dardón, director for the human rights organization Washington Office on Latin America, or WOLA, said the process of selecting judges must be reformed.

“This is the result of various factors: the work of the nomination committees was criticized; there was an irregular process with a candidate list that was not the best; there was no list of honorable and professionally qualified candidates,” she said.

Juan Francisco Sandoval, Guatemala’s former anticorruption prosecutor who was driven into exile by Attorney General Consuelo Porras, said the new court fails to meet expectations.

“Not all of those selected guarantee judicial independence or commitment to justice, but rather again have commitments with special interest groups,” Sandoval said.

The justices selected Thursday will serve 5-year terms.