Guatemala: Indigenous People Block Roads Against President Giammattei

By teleSUR

02 December 20

They also demand the "purging" of the Congress and the resignation of the Interior Minister.

undreds of Indigenous people Monday blocked the main highways of western Guatemala to demand President Alejandro Giammattei's resignation and reject austerity, corruption, and police brutality.

The Indigenous communities of the Solola Department, located 130 kilometers from Guatemala City, organized the blockades on the Inter-American highway, which leads to the capital.

"On November 24, our community requested a dialogue with the President, but we did not receive a response. Today we took to the streets to unite our voices against him and his government," Solala's Indigenous Town Hall stated.

"People blocked the traffic with signs, stones, and trucks," the public Unit of Road Conservation's spokesman Juan Aquino confirmed.

The Indigenous communities also requested the resignation of the Congress' lawmakers and the Interior Minister Gendri Reyes' removal over the police brutality with which the government has responded to stop the wave of protests.

"The President is very arrogant. The Congress cares more about his whims then the country's needs," the leader of the protest Santiago Cux explained.

Since Nov. 21, the people have been taking to the streets against Giammattei's government. Popular indignation exploded after the approval of the 2021 State Budget, which called for reductions in the health and education sectors.