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President, Murderer, or Both?
Moises Castillo / AP Photo
The Guatemalan president’s alleged role in a recent murder there shows how Mexico’s drug violence is infecting other parts of Latin America—and threatening to destabilize the entire region.
I left Guatemala under duress eight years ago. My work as a journalist had earned me threats, and I believed it was no longer safe for me to live in that country. In the years since, I have grown distant, to the point that I now feel more American than Guatemalan. But every now and then, you come across a story so powerful that you cannot help but be moved. That is the case with the death of Rodrigo Rosenberg, a Guatemalan lawyer who has shocked his country from the grave, prompting a civic uprising that may bring down an increasingly unpopular president.
Rosenberg, a 47-year-old father of four, was gunned down on Sunday while he rode a bike near his home in Guatemala City. The following day, at the funeral, his family released a video recorded by the victim just days before his death. In it, he accuses Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom of planning and ordering the murder. “If you are listening to this message,” said Rosenberg, “it’s because I was murdered by President Alvaro Colom, with the help of [the president’s private secretary] Gustavo Alejos and [alleged drug dealer] Gregorio Valdez.”
Click Below to Watch the Victim’s Posthumous Video
The Cambridge- and Harvard-educated lawyer was, by all accounts, an honorable citizen. He spent 21 years in private practice and as a professor at Rafael Landivar Law School in Guatemala City. In his posthumous video, he explains that the government elite put a hit on him because he knew too much about the murder of a client, Khalil Musa, who was killed in April. Musa was a prominent businessman who had been tapped by the Colom administration to join the board of a bank owned in part by the government. According to Rosenberg, Musa discovered a deep web of corruption within the bank, and, wishing to keep his hands clean, asked the president to accept his resignation. Colom and his advisers allegedly feared that Musa would blow the whistle, and decided to off him.
In the video, Rosenberg called the Guatemalan president “a thief, a murderer, and a coward.” He said Colom’s secretary had approached him directly, warning him that he would be killed if he didn’t stop denouncing Musa’s murder. The accusations have prompted two consecutive days of protests in Guatemala. Local media reports thousands of people dressed in black, calling for the president to resign. And a Facebook group called “United Guatemalans Demanding Alvaro Colom’s Resignation” has drawn over 20,000 members since Monday. “I was very proud to join the protests in Guatemala City,” said blogger Luis Guillermo Pineda in an interview with The Daily Beast. He added, “We demand the immediate resignation of President Alvaro Colom because he has lost the legitimacy to be the head of government; we also call for the prosecution of first lady Sandra de Colom, as well as Gustavo Alejos, the private secretary of the president, who have been accused of corruption on several times.”
From an American perspective, it is important to understand that the corruption of which Colom and company are accused is not your run-of-the-mill kickbacks from government projects. Corruption in Guatemala must be understood within the context of the growing power of organized crime in Mexico. Guatemala represents the southern border of the Mexican drug lords’ fiefdom. Kingpin Joaquin Guzmán has been known to use Guatemala as his hideout, and it has been widely reported that the cartels have recruited former officers of the Guatemalan army for their private bands of mercenaries. Indeed, Colom has been accused of having links to the drug mafia since at least 2003, when his failed presidential campaign came under scrutiny for donations he received from alleged drug dealers.
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Mr D�az-Dur�n has done a fantastic job writing this article. There is only one sentence I feel is out of place, the one about how he has no interest in returning to Guatemala. I feel that such a comment is beyond the scope of the article. I am also Guatemalan, also left several years ago and now reside in the U.S. (although I do not consider myself "American" in the same sense of the word he uses, I believe I have been American all my life since our country is in the Continent of America). Aside from that, the article is pure genius and I will share it among all English-speaking friends who want to know more about what is happening in Guatemala right now.
While not a supporter of Colom, I feel so much more must be done than simply replacing a corrupt President, it would be a step in the right direction. I left Colombia in the 84, and then spent the next 4 years in Guatemala. Since then, I have traveled back at least twice a year and have slowly watched it decline into the chaos of money laundering and drug culture. Unlike you I am a gringa who would truly move back to Guatemala in a heart beat. Despite all the craziness, I can not get the people, the landscapes, the county I love so much out of my head or heart. So much needs to change.
Wow, what terrible news. I spent a good part of 2006 and 2007 in Guatemala. A lot of people I knew had high hopes for the new President. I hope Obama pays a lot of attention to the problems our neighbors in Central America are living with.
"Mexico's drug violence is infecting other parts of Latin America-and threatening to destabilize the entire region."
Is it unfair to ask the question,
when has the entire region of Latin America
ever been "STABILIZED?"
In the context of Latin America,
"destabilize" meaning what . . .
even more corruption and violence than before?
And this is not the first murder related to Coloms� government! It is simply the most visible. Mr. Rosenberg is a national hero, we praise his courage!
charming article well built for the cause
i agree with sophia5
and also think this writers conclusion is ridiculous jajaja
"Time has come, indeed. Not only for Guatemala, but also for the U.S. to help put an end to the growing power of the cartels that are wreaking havoc in Latin America. An obscure but brave lawyer in a small country has given President Obama the opportunity to take a strong stance against the forces that threaten our southern neighbors. He may do so by calling for a transparent and honest investigation of the involvement of the Guatemalan government in the crimes alleged by Mr. Rosenberg."
U.S. to the rescue jajaja if they could do something to stop it they probably would have already done so a long time ago
doesnt he know the U.S. is as corrupt as anywhere else, different kind but sure much so. America has one of the most automated society's in the world, blind to all the mental boundaries and intellectual violence that they suffer. So don't suggest that any kind of "help" from U.S.A. would be any better. The answer lies within everyone not a governmental intervention or stance. jajaja
Let's ask the important question. If he did order a murder, can it be tied to the Bush administration?
Sophia5-
It's not so much that the question is unfair, but rather that it appears to be a question derived from a cursory reading of current news and headlines in American media about drug violence in Mexico.
First off, what do you mean by "stabilized?" Do you mean an enduring, solid democratic political process, relative economic prosperity and/or growth, and little or no violence? Do you mean a society and country governed by the rule of law? Do you mean a uniformity of experience that one might find when traveling throughout the United States or the European Union? Do you mean whether or not the average citizen feels secure and protected?
I was born in Mexico City to Puerto Rican parents, which makes me both an American and a Mexican citizen. I have lived in Caracas, Venezuela, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and in Guadalajara, Mexico for 11 years. I have been here during the recent flare-up of drug-related violence, and I was also in Los Angeles during the 1992 Watts riots. I remember watching the SWAT helicopters and the sirens from my window. Last year, the employees of a very small law firm were murdered by drug enforcers because they were defending someone who was going to turn state's evidence. The law firm was in the building right next to where I work, the American School Foundation of Guadalajara.
My point is this: "stability" is a fluid concept. One could point to the loss of job security, the sobering quantity of home foreclosures, or the inner-city violence of cities like Camden, NJ or Los Angeles (with the effect that being a Forensic Science technician is one of the fastest growing and relatively recession-proof jobs right now) and say the US is threatened with "destabilization." One could also look at the current shenanigans on Wall Street, or read up on Halliburton and Blackwater in Iraq, and ask clamor to know what is being done to address that corruption.
One could also look at a country like Costa Rica, which has no standing army, and appreciate their long tradition of peaceful democracy. One could also look at Chile, which prior to the 1973 coup, had the longest practice of democratic government in the entire region, stretching back 150 years; a legacy that it has managed to honor again in the last 19 years. These are just two examples.
Anyways, I hope this answered some questions, and hopefully it gave you more questions. I would love to continue this discussion.
I've been living outside Guatemala for more than 10 years, but I feel as Guatemalan as the first day I was born. I am really sorry to read this type of comments from a prominent journalist that has been living in the US less time than what he spent in Guatemala. The fuzz about this murder is because this person belongs to the small Guatemalan society that has access to health and studies, how many persons have a Harvard Degree in my Guatemala? you can count them, and how many have the possibility to even finish the primary school??? or follow university careers?? the United Nations Human Development Index gives us horrible numbers about this. I didn't vote for Colom either, but it doesn't means that I agree with all that has been said this past week, because it is easy to say he's guilty because unfortunately someone that has been murdered said it in a video!!! Law exists, and none can be accused without having a trial, that would be soooooo easy. Furthermore, I just ask people to think a little bit, analyze what is happening: urban transport drivers are killed every week in Guatemala, more than 200 since January 2009, but they are not renowned lawyers, doctors or bankers, they just work to serve Guatemalans, and they get killed... but they don't get the right to a massive demonstration... People can be easily manipulated if they don't know about their civic rights, if the only moment they react is when one of their "equals" is murder, if we want Guatemala to change, it won't be enough asking President Colom to leave! Each and every Guatemalan has to change. We still are one of the poorest countries in Latin America, our indigenous people still live in deplorable conditions, 5% of the whole population gets a University Degree, and this is not since two years ago, it has been decades! No! I do not agree with the journalist that wrote this article, he and I had the chance of being in the good side of the society in Guatemala and were able to travel, to speak other languages. I understand there is a lot of things to change, because he had to leave for political reasons, and I had to leave because social reasons. Let's not get confused about what Guatemala really needs.
Hello everyone! The point here is not that Rosenberg is special or better than all those bus drivers that have also been killed, just because he was rich. NO, the point is that we could see and hear about his death because we have a denounce on tape. We have him telling us "I was killed by Pres. Colom& Co".
This man had enough financial means to get out of the country just like other Guatemalans have done, to turn his back and walk away and live his life. He had the possibility to choose! And he chose to stand up for his beliefs and for ALL guatemalans, rich and poor!
I am with all Guatemalans who fight to put a stop to the impunity in the country! justice for Rosenberg and all the other innocent victims of corruption and violence! A democratic society cannot function without an impartial and independent system of justice!
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Well, I am a Guatemalan living in Guatemala. I have no other place to go, for the moment.Constantino has well pointed a right told sequence of facts that has been manipulated to the international media, which seems to transmit now only the local channels material. While their initial transmissions (I am referring to CNN) were very professional, and included an interview to Guatemala's President, Alvaro Colom, by Patricia Janiot, seems that the journalist must have been called on her attention by being so straight forward and direct with highly6 blushing questions to the President, Mr. Colom.
For everyone's knowledge, what the legitimate social movement is claiming, is for the President to stand by aside from his official position, in order to allow a red-carpet investigation, which of course should include the international support that has taken the case (FBI and CICIG).
If he is not guilty, that is what should be done. And the reader who preceeded myself in this sequence of notes saying that there have been more deaths, is right. Absolutely.
Each bus pilot that has been murdered, each women, and I particularly call on the attention of a 2-month baby who was killed "by many gun shuts that crossed his tiny body", who had not even a remote idea of what was going on, was killed, too, while carried in arms by his mother.
While other country's life expectancy equals more less to the age of 75 - 85, for this baby, life expectancy was reduced to "TWO MONTHS", and left the world wihouth even having the time to speak a word or to express how impressed he could have been in a place were delinquency is rampant, and the government authorities, beginning with Mr. Colom and Mrs. Sandra Torres (the wife), try to shield themselves behind their old, evil and weak speech of "the rich against the poor".
This is a matter of "JUSTICE". It is not only one death. It is one death that represents thousands of other deaths, many of which you will not be able to read, maybe, in daily news.
But now you know a little baby is included in the list.
Washington received Guatemala's Minister of Foreigh Affairs a few days ago. When he presented himself begging for support against to what he kind of called "conspiracy of the Right".
Washington, PLEASE READ THIS: IF YOU DO NOT WANT ANOTHER "HUGO CHAVEZ" TO DEAL WITH, BE CAREFUL. GUATEMALA'S PEOPLE IS CLAIMING FOR JUSTICE. THAT IS ALL.
Rosenberg murder does not surprises me one bit. This has been ocurring at least, since mid 60's. Maybe not the narcotraffic, but the corruption and lack of respect for human life.
My father as well, is a Harvard grad. A man who wanted to help the country by researching and analizing the social-economical-political situation. Has published many studies and that has earned him threats and three exiles. The last one lasting 13 years.
Unfortunately, we do not have presidents who wish to do the right thing. It doesn't matter, if they come from the military, (primarily non-educated) or from the private sector (affluent and educated) their agenda is to make money for themselves and a couple of friends.
Would anybody propose to do mining in the rich fertile soil of Sonoma Valley, CA? Well, that is ocurring in Guatemala, even though it is an agricultural country with spring weather year-round. Thanks to our ex-President Alvaro Arzu (affluent guatemalan of the private sector) together with the Congretional President Arabela Castro Quinonez approved "Montana Exploradora de Guatemala" (subsidiary of Goldcorp Inc. de Canada) and "Compania Guatemalteca de Niquel" (also foreign based) of mining. Mr. Alvaro Arzu and his supported ignored the National Law (Convenio 169) and signed a contract pre-written by Montana itself, authorizing them of mining in Guatemala. (See Decreto 48-97)
Mr. Oscar Berger, another ex-president, (affluent from the private sector) happens to be one of the major share holders of "Montana Exploradora de Guatemala" and "Compania Guatemalteca de Niquel".
Our Mayor of the City, Lic Colom Argueta gets murdered at daylight in the middle of rush time and the killers are never found, much less prosecuted. Meanwhile, the rumors are that the government is behind it. (A military helicopter is in communication with motorcycles, which easily manuevered through traffic, chasing the mayor and killing him; while it is videotaped from the helicopter!)
Ex- President General Rios Mont (nickname River of Blood and from the military sector), can't leave Guatemala or will get arrested by Interpol to be prosecuted for human right violations. He is responsible for murdering and torturing hundreds of indians, including children!(Babies finger and toe nails were pulled one by one to make their parents confess, even if they had nothing to confess. Babies were also hold from their ankles, spin in the air to finally launch them against trees, smashing their brains).
As I said, this has being going on and on for decades.The only reason Rosenberg murder is being heard are due to two factors. First, due to the technological era we are living, his video tape reached out the world faster that it could be destroy or misplaced. Second, because he comes from an affluent society. (Currently, 5 to 10 busdrivers are being murdered DAILY, but we don't hear about it).People have being murdered for decades, for different reasons; they think differently (supposedly we are a democracy), they are poor and their land is easily taken away, daily crimes and narcotraffic. Guatemala sadly, is a violent country, where laws exists but they are not respected or enforced.
Professors and the intellectuals of the State University - Universidad de
San Carlos (the first University in Central America, founder of many professionals in the area) were killed in the streets with machine-guns, including stand-by students. That generation of hope for a better country is gone, maybe a handful were lucky enough to survive.
Yes, my friends, this is the story of Guatemala and if Mr. Rosenberg was a bus driver, we would not be hearing anything.
I agree with the previous comments from Tutuounti and Sophia5. It is sad to see how low Guatemala scores internationally. One of the key factors for Guatemala to improve, is to educate the country. In Costa Rica all children have access to school; it is the law.In Guatemala it is a priviledge. How can Guatemala be prosperous with this fact alone?
The mayority of the police and military maybe have an elementary (6th grade) education and yet they have the weapons and the physical control of the country? They are the first ones to sell their values and morals for a title..... and some money. A really dangerous combination!
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