2023-08-16 01:02:33
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemala’s largest organization of military veterans endorsed presidential candidate Sandra Torres on Tuesday after fighting her during her first two candidacies, showing just how surprisingly far her campaign has come progressive opponent in the second round of the elections has shaken the country’s politics.
Torres and his hosts at the Guatemalan Military Veterans Association portrayed his election opponent, Bernardo Arévalo, as a threat to democracy and the nation’s families.
As he did during their first debate the night before, Torres criticized Arévalo for not really knowing his country because he was born in Uruguay when his father, former president Juan José Arévalo, was in exile after the ouster of his successor Jacobo. Arbenz, which had the backing of the CIA.
“Today, Guatemala is in danger more than ever,” Torres said, warning that Arévalo would disband the army, legalize same-sex marriage and expropriate private property. “We do not want communism in Guatemala.”
Arevalo, a lawmaker, academic and former diplomat, has not said he would do any of those things, but the threat worked among the veterans who were present, who applauded and celebrated in response. Arévalo surprised observers when he managed to go to the runoff after the first round of voting, held on June 25, because the party to which he belongs, the Movimiento Semilla, had less than 3% of the intention to vote in the polls. .
Guatemalans will vote on Sunday for Torres, who has already lost twice in the second round, or for the upstart Arévalo.
Retired Colonel Edwin González said the association represents some 380,000 Guatemalan veterans. “We are talking about a significant electoral force,” he said.
When asked why the association was now supporting Torres after working against him during his previous two campaigns, González replied that it was “the best option.” Torres has veered to the right since her days as first lady in the center-left government of her then-husband Álvaro Colom.
“Today we have two candidates and one that is a threat,” said González, referring to the Semillas de Arévalo Movement.
The main threat, he noted, was the possibility of same-sex marriage becoming legal. Another is that several Guatemalan veterans have been on trial for war crimes committed during the country’s 36-year civil war and are concerned that a government led by Arevalo could prosecute more.
“Once again, we veterans are going out to save our country, and if we have to go back to what we were before to defend Guatemala, we are going to do it,” said González.
But not everyone present was convinced.
Antonio Hernández López, who was sitting at the back of the outdoor patio where Torres delivered his speech, said he liked Torres’s proposals about doing more for veterans and protecting Guatemala’s conservative values, but said he will spend more time thinking about it and discussing it with your family before deciding who you will vote for on Sunday.
The 57-year-old retired army nurse commented that he liked that Torres seemed to be the opposite of Arevalo, but did not believe everything he was saying about his adversary, acknowledging that it was all about “politics.” He also doubted that Torres could really help veterans even if he wanted to, because that aid would have to be approved by Congress.
The change in position of the veterans association did not go unnoticed either.
“It’s ugly,” Hernández commented on it.
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