Former soldiers burn the Guatemalan Congress to demand financial compensation for their contribution to the war: "Blood will flow here"

"Blood is going to flow here,"

shouted a former Guatemalan military man, who warned that the congressional deputies would not be allowed to leave. He was true to his word and minutes later hundreds of angry veteran soldiers beat

the few police officers guarding the legislative building

, as well as several journalists. After having controlled the area, in the heart of Guatemala City, they broke into Congress, breaking doors and windows and knocking down the garage door, despite the fact that several workers of the institution were busy placing huge sticks that did nothing to prevent the protesters access.

Former soldiers from all over the country arrived in buses to the capital of Guatemala, as they had announced last week to demand that the congressmen approve a

in order to receive a pension of 120,000 quetzals (13,000 euros) for his contribution to the internal armed conflict that ravaged the Central American country between 1960 and 1996 with a balance of 200,000 people dead and 45,000 missing. These massacres were perpetrated in 93% of the cases by the army and in 3% by the guerrillas, according to the report made by the United Nations Commission for Historical Clarification. In the remaining 4%, authorship could not be determined.

Despite the fact that they were responsible for most of the killings, veteran soldiers pressure the Government to collect their compensation while justice has been imprisoning and prosecuting several of the responsible military personnel, some of whom have been detained even in the United States where they had tried to take refuge without success.

Even before the current President of Guatemala,

came to power in January 2020, in the middle of an electoral campaign before a group of ex-

military men

, he promised to approve the

for the provision of military service during the internal armed confrontation. . "I don't want to be remembered as another son of a bitch in the history of this country," said the president, who said he was "a man who keeps his word because whoever does not comply does not deserve to be called a man." However, two years have already passed and the promise remains in the air, taking into account that the Government does not even have counted how many ex-military men would be entitled to financial compensation, as well as land and medical insurance that veterans demand.

The only attempt that has been made to respond to these demands has been the Law promoted by two deputies of Congress on November 29, 2019, although it has not yet been approved. For this reason, the ex-military men feel

who, in the same act in which he promised to approve economic compensation, an Army veteran warned him that if he did not comply with them "one day they will know the strength of the ex-military ", because" we deserve that payment. "

Given the delay in passing the Law, veteran soldiers

although they put an end to this protest after the commitment of Congress to meet with them to reach an agreement.

On the occasion of the Plenary called for this Tuesday, hundreds of ex-military arrived today waving machetes and sticks and announcing that they would not let the deputies leave if the aforementioned economic compensation was not approved at once.

After several hours concentrating on both exits from the legislative building, they decided to break into Congress by force after learning that the Plenary had finally been suspended as a result of protests abroad.

POLICE FLEE RUNNING UNDER A RAIN OF STONES

The few police officers outside opted to run away when they saw a mob of ex-military men running after them with machetes and sticks, as they began throwing stones at them. At the same time, another large group managed to tear down the gate of the Congress parking lot, where they set fire to five vehicles, a warehouse and several union offices.

Subsequently, they swept away everything in their path, breaking the doors of the deputies' offices, as well as the bathrooms, and knocking over tables and chairs while

legislative

, including 12 deputies, as well as workers and journalists. Some employees even climbed onto the roof of Congress for fear that they would be lynched by ex-military personnel who beat journalists and members of the Legislative Chamber.

One of the deputies who was in the Legislative Chamber

regretted that the situation "got out of control" and added that "violence and vandalism cannot be justified", taking into account that "they discredit any movement." For this reason, he advocated "giving priority to dialogue." While the parliamentarian attended to the press, several firefighters struggled to put out with buckets of water the enormous flames that could be seen from outside the Congress. Faced with the riots that were taking place with clashes between riot police and the ex-military, they could not put the fire truck in the parking lot, so the firefighters blindly threw water from the street from a hose.

The police themselves were suffocating with the

that they threw themselves in the streets surrounding the Congress to prevent the protesters from preventing the evacuation of the hundreds of people who were inside and who could finally be rescued after 4:30 p.m. hours in Spain).

Those who could got into the police vehicles, while the majority had to run away inhaling the tear gas that flooded several streets in the center of Guatemala City, forcing the ex-military to retreat, although they continued to throw stones and all kinds of objects. to the cops.

The Deputy Director of the National Civil Police

He went to the scene and acknowledged that he did not have official data on arrests, although hours later the first arrests of "some accused of disturbing order in the historic center were reported." It also reported that in all public buildings there were more than 1,000 police elements. However, unlike other demonstrations in front of the Guatemalan Congress, there was hardly any police presence. Benito justified it as follows: "the leaders had announced that they were going to hold a peaceful demonstration and the protocol of the necessary police presence to guard public buildings was activated." However, he pointed out that what took place was "an attack with machetes and sticks and it radically changed the situation." A) Yes,revealed that a journalist suffered a machete injury to the head, while several agents were admitted wounded to the public hospitals of San Juan de Dios and Roosevelt.

Faced with this scenario, "we had to act and protect the physical integrity of the people," he concluded. Despite this,

in the streets surrounding Congress, where the Police did not achieve control until several hours after the riots began. It is not the first time that protesters have burned the Legislative Chamber of Guatemala, since on November 21, 2020, several hooded people set fire to the Congress amid a climate of protests throughout the country against corruption and to demand the resignation of President Alejandro Giammattei. On that occasion, the protesters even

Likewise, in September 2017, thousands of protesters kept Guatemalan deputies locked up in Congress for seven hours demanding their resignation after the approval of two decrees that reduced prison sentences for corruption crimes and which days later were revoked for avoid further protests.

The demonstration on Tuesday took place a day after the Legislative Chamber approved a new Board of Directors, chaired by the ruling deputy

from the Vamos party with which Giammattei won the presidential elections.

"Respect for our authorities will make a difference, because by respecting our authorities, we are respecting our God, who is the one who sets kings and removes kings," the legislator remarked in her speech.

Only 24 hours later, ex-military officers burned down the Congress in a clear sign of the weakness of the Guatemalan institutions.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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