In Honduras, civil society organizations, including the Washington Office of Latin American Affairs (WOLA), believe that the establishment of the International Commission against Corruption and Impunity (Cicih) is necessary to combat criminal structures, given the country’s lack of judicial independence and institutional capacity . Neighboring Guatemala successfully adopted a similar body between 2007 and 2019.

Necessary legal reforms

In January 2022, President Xiomara Castro took over the government of that country, “with the rule of law broken, with illegal networks embedded in public administration at all levels. Organized crime was so entrenched at the highest levels of government that in April 2022, former President Juan Orlando Hernández was extradited to the United States, charged with drug and firearms trafficking. Something similar is happening in our country, but with variations, as evidenced by the investigation of Chief State Attorney Diana Salazar in the case of Metastasis. There is also a high level of corruption and impunity in Honduras, so much so that Transparency International’s 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index ranked it 157th out of 180 countries. In Honduras, as in Ecuador, it has been proven that the failures of anti-corruption efforts were the product of legal reforms and legislative gimmicks disguised as “political control” to prevent the fight against corruption, because they prevented the investigation and prosecution of corrupt people, while favors money laundering resulting from embezzlement and drug trafficking.

Sentenced to death?

In reaction to the impunity schemes created in the Honduran Congress, the United States Department of State has included members of the legislature on its visa withdrawal list known as the “Angel List.” Sanctions that in Ecuador would also be applied to former legislators, police generals and citizens who were public officials during the mandate because they were part of organized crime structures.

The case of Metastasis and the leaking of information that enabled the escape of those involved in a huge criminal structure that could have compromised more than 40 mayors in the country, former Interior Minister Patricio Carrillo revealed. It has been shown once again that the Ecuadorian state institutions designed to investigate and punish organized crime need the support of more qualified and reliable personnel, as well as sufficient economic resources.

Since this column, we have been insisting that the rulers ask the United Nations to establish an International Commission against Impunity to assist our State Attorney’s Office. To do this, no public consultation is required. It was not necessary in Guatemala, nor in Honduras. All you have to do is agree on the contract and sign it. There, the legal framework must be clarified that will enable Cicie (the International Commission to Fight Impunity of Ecuador) to investigate corruption and prosecute organized crime and its armed wings together with the Prosecutor’s Office. Just political will. (OR)