Guatemalan Congress creates truth commission to receive information about CICIG

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(CNN Spanish) - The newly created Truth Commission of the Guatemalan Congress began public hearings this Tuesday to “request, gather and receive information” on the actions of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG).

This Monday, through a legislative agreement signed by the president of Congress, Álvaro Arzú Escobar, a Truth Commission was created, which instead of investigations, will hold public hearings to listen to people who “can contribute to the knowledge of the truth about everything acted by the CICIG ”. According to the legislative agreement, the investigations carried out by CICIG did not comply with the provisions of the country's Constitution.

MIRA: Iván Velásquez: Creation of commission to investigate CICIG is unconstitutional

According to the legislative agreement, the work period of the truth commission expires on January 10, 2020. Then, you must submit a final report with the information received.

The creation of this commission comes after the Constitutional Court of Guatemala ordered the suspension of a parliamentary commission created at the end of September by the legislative body and which sought to investigate the actions of CICIG during its 12 years of functions in the country Central American

Iván Velásquez, former commissioner of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala, told CNN that he believes the creation of the commission had been unconstitutional and clarified that the commission's investigations were carried out with the collaboration of the Guatemalan Public Ministry.

At the beginning of 2019, the president of Guatemala, Jimmy Morales, unilaterally terminated the mandate of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala, an organization created jointly between the government and the United Nations Organization that investigated corruption cases in Guatemala .

The Attorney General's Office, citizens and part of the international community rejected the decision of the Government.

CICIG