Setback in battle against corruption and impunity Honduras
Juan Jiménez Mayor, the head of the Support Mission Against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (MACCIH), announced his resignation. Mayor explained his resignation as a response to the absence of Honduran and international support for his mission. From Angelika Albaladejo of InSight Crime
Jiménez's resignation is similar to Carlos Castrenana's resignation. He was CICIG's first leader. He resigned saying that he could do no more. Even though CICIG had some successes in its first few years, Castresana resigned saying that the Guatemalan government was not serious about tackling corruption. The Guatemalan Congress had failed to pass important reforms and President Alvaro Colom (yes, the one just arrested for corruption in Transurbano) had appointed Conrado Reyes (a man with alleged ties to organized crime) as attorney general.
Castresana's replacement didn't have a smooth ride as commissioner, and CICIG has not been perfect by any means, but we can only hope that in the long-run Jiménez's resignation leads to similar progress in Honduras' battle against impunity.
...Jiménez highlights security concerns, limited resources and the OAS’ general attitude of indifference toward the MACCIH among the reasons for his resignation.
Jiménez also pointed to obstacles created by the Honduran government. Last month, Congress passed a law that effectively shields officials from corruption investigations. Jiménez has called the move an “impunity pact” meant to interfere with the MACCIH’s probe into a systematic embezzlement scheme allegedly involving 60 members of congress.
In addition, Jiménez highlighted the fact that anti-corruption legislation suggested by the mission has not moved forward, and recent penal code reforms have actually led to lighter sentences for corruption.Eric Olson, Christine Wade, and I share some thoughts about what Jiménez's resignation possibly means in the article. I said that his complaints about how the OAS and Honduran government had failed to support MACCIH's efforts support those Hondurans and analysts who believed that MACCIH was a smokescreen from the start. However, CICIG in Guatemala ran into trouble its first few years trying to find its feet before critical international and domestic actors began to see its value.
Jiménez's resignation is similar to Carlos Castrenana's resignation. He was CICIG's first leader. He resigned saying that he could do no more. Even though CICIG had some successes in its first few years, Castresana resigned saying that the Guatemalan government was not serious about tackling corruption. The Guatemalan Congress had failed to pass important reforms and President Alvaro Colom (yes, the one just arrested for corruption in Transurbano) had appointed Conrado Reyes (a man with alleged ties to organized crime) as attorney general.
Castresana's replacement didn't have a smooth ride as commissioner, and CICIG has not been perfect by any means, but we can only hope that in the long-run Jiménez's resignation leads to similar progress in Honduras' battle against impunity.
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