Tension in Guatemala as justice system elections unfold amid insecurity
Indigenous leaders hold a press conference in front of the Supreme Court of Justice in Guatemala City on February 12, 2026. Photo © Norma Sancir.
Reportage • Norma Sancir • March 6, 2026 • Leer en castellano
Guatemala is at a tense crossroads in which the struggle for control of the justice system and the worsening security crisis are intertwined, and the election of its judicial authorities is underway, as the criminalization of Indigenous leaders, journalists, land defenders, and students continues.
The first two months of the year saw a number of events highlighting this situation. Violence, weakened institutions, and the election of judicial authorities are all part of the same complicated political scenario that deeply impacts Indigenous peoples and women.
On January 18, prisoners at three Guatemala City prisons—Preventivo in Zone 18, Fraijanes II, and the maximum-security Renovación 1—rioted. They demanded the return of their leaders to facilities where they had been given illegal privileges before being transferred last year.
The following day, a series of attacks were carried out against the National Civil Police (PNC), killing 11 officers and sparking a climate of panic in the capital.
The executive branch responded by declaring a 30-day state of emergency. Classes, transportation, and some services were suspended on the first day; freedom of movement, assembly, and gathering were also restricted. Prison visits were also banned.
The PNC reported that during the state of siege, which ended on February 16, police carried out 2,800 security operations and raids, seized weapons with the help of the Guatemalan Army, and made 2,700 arrests.
The second day saw the return of classes and public services, but people were still impacted by the heavy police presence in Guatemala City, which is home to the highest concentration of gangs and extortion.
In rural areas, police deployment was less significant. But communities were still wary, given that previous governments used similar measures to repress and arrest local leaders who defend human rights.
The state of emergency ended on February 16. Guatemala is currently in its second state of prevention, which can last up to 15 days. This measure, which is based on anti-gang crackdowns, does not suspend constitutional guarantees. However, it restricts gatherings and demonstrations and mandates the identification of individuals and vehicles.
Insecurity writ large
The Guatemalan justice system favors impunity and justice is selective, with judges, prosecutors, and magistrates freeing politicians accused of corruption and closing cases at will.
The prison riots and attacks on police are not isolated incidents. Bernardo Arévalo's administration, now in its second year, took office amid high rates of extortion, which impacts business owners and women in particular.
Insecurity is a structural problem in Guatemala, as are health and education, according to Marta Godínez of the Alianza Política Sector de Mujeres (Women's Political Alliance).
After the violent events in January, “women remain on notice,” Godínez said in an interview with Ojalá. She added that understanding how the justice system works is essential, as it affects many other rights in Guatemala.
For analysts like Denis Martínez of Impunity Watch, the security crisis cannot be separated from the institutional fragility of the justice system. Martínez argues that the justice system has been used by criminal networks and political actors, who are now seeking to influence elections.
The election period to choose magistrates for the Supreme Electoral Tribunal and Constitutional Court, and the Attorney General of the Public Ministry began in February and will continue over the next few months.
These elections are not held through direct voting by the population, but rather through a complicated process of political agreements and elections.
Martínez points out that “the main structural issue with electing judicial authorities is that they depend on political entities, which have their own particular interests.”
A contested electoral process
There is a strong element of political confrontation in this electoral process, given that it will determine who interprets the Constitution, who will lead criminal prosecutions, and who will oversee future elections.
Maria Consuelo Porras, the current Attorney General, has a long track record of acting arbitrarily and abusing her discretionary power. In late 2023, a powerful mobilization of Indigenous communities demanded her removal from office. In this election cycle, Porras ran for a seat in the Constitutional Court. When her vote count fell short, she put herself forward again for Attorney General.
"Elections have become instruments of political persecution. That’s why we refer to a ‘legal dictatorship,’" said an exiled Indigenous leader, who requested anonymity for security reasons.
During the second round of voting to elect magistrates to the Constitutional Court on February 12, the Public Ministry carried out raids on polling stations, heightening tensions.
Aníbal García, a lawyer with Unidos por la Democracia, a sectoral union, says that the Guatemalan Bar Association plays an important role in the secondary elections, in which it seeks to promote changes in power structures and monopolies. “The hope is to redirect the democratic model, governance, and the rule of law,” García said.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights noted in a December 2025 report on human rights in Guatemala that the Public Ministry has strayed from its constitutional mandate and operates as an instrument of selective persecution, which exacerbates public mistrust.
“If there are no changes at the Constitutional Court, the racist and elitist model of the justice system that has privileged impunity and criminalizes anyone who challenges this system will continue,” said García.
Sandra Morán, former congressperson and member of the Women's Movement with Constituent Power, also suggested there may be delays in the current electoral process.
There is “a dispute between two political projects: one wants continued impunity for looting, control, dispossession, and illicit enrichment, while the other is a project for greater democracy and expanded spaces for participation,” said Morán in an interview with Ojalá.
A diverse turnout
Sonia Raguay is a Maya Poqomam lawyer and member of the Association of Maya Lawyers of Guatemala. She cast her vote at the Bar Association during the first round in the election of Constitutional magistrates February 4. She pointed out how little participation women have in a justice system that’s captured by special interests.
Raguay, who is also a member of Congress, filed an injunction with the Constitutional Court to safeguard the results of the Bar Association's election of magistrates against possible fraud.
“We want these positions to be held by people who are committed to the law. Otherwise, there will be no access to justice, and our activities will continue to be criminalized in order to delegitimize the struggle of Indigenous peoples,” said Marvin Nájera, a Maya Ch’orti Indigenous leader, in an interview with Ojalá.
This is in line with the views of Milvian Aspuac, a Maya Kaqchiquel Indigenous leader and member of the National Weavers' Movement. Aspuac says her group has used the justice system to ensure the protection of the collective intellectual property of weaving, and that she has two legal cases with favorable rulings from the Constitutional Court, though there has been little progress in enforcing them.
“We also have criminal cases, which the courts end up dismissing because the Public Ministry interprets laws differently. Indigenous peoples do not have access to justice,” said Aspuac.
The current situation reveals a clear common thread: prison violence, states of emergency, and judicial elections are interconnected.
They are part of a struggle for control of the justice system and, consequently, for the democratic direction of the country. What is decided in these elections will directly affect the state's ability to tackle violence, guarantee rights, and rebuild institutional trust.
