Guatemala’s new president

Quick march

A former general must move fast to meet expectations

See article

Readers' comments



LatAm Gringo in reply to JRcobar

Revenues have been increasing mostly due to tremendous bond offerings, the money which has then been stolen. This increase in revenue has not led to an increase in government size.

Guatemala is a prime example of what happens when you have a government that is too little and too underfunded for the country it has to serve. While the US may have a large government and it may be wasteful at times, it does not have a murder conviction rate of 1%, which is the case for Guatemala.

Interestingly enough, due to a combination of the 1% conviction rate and free markets, ordering an assassination in Guatemala can cost as little as $5! I've seen it happen on more than one occasion.

It is easy to spew rhetoric and idealized conditions (private markets are efficient at allocating resources, etc.), but I would suggest living in a country such as Guatemala to realize that not everything can be left to the markets, and that if US government waste at least means that a killer has a high likelihood of being convicted, then I'll take it.


"Its murder rate of 39 per 100,000 people, partly spurred by drug gangs, is among the world’s highest."

War On Drugs equals War equals killing people.


A new administration always brings hope and I wish President Perez much success during his term in office.The challenge is monumental.Law & Order is undoubtly at the top of the list.The judiciary has to be reformed.Jails have to be built and impunity must be done with.This challenge,must be dealt with an Iron Fist.It will take the entirety of his mandate.Economic & Social issues will rebound dramatically from this action.

LatAm Gringo in reply to obenskik

Drugs only account for 50% of their revenue stream. The gangs are increasingly diversified, and in the case of Guatemala, rely on extortions (from bus drivers, elementary schools, and shop owners) and contraband. Take away one revenue stream (drugs) and they will ramp up the others.

Example: The gangs used to extort bus drivers for protection money. The government then implemented a government-run bus system with e-money. Since that revenue stream dried up, the gang members got thinking... The next day at a local impoverished elementary school there was a note demanding $10,000 by the end of the week or they would kill the students and teachers.

I am not saying that I don't agree with you, but it is important to understand that the War on Drugs isn't 100% responsible for the violence and even if the US should by some miracle legalize all drugs tomorrow, these gangs WILL continue to exist and WILL continue to commit murder.


The article implies that the Cicig's mandate has in fact been renewed in 2011. However, the Colom government has reportedly omitted to submit the required request to the Guatemalan Congress. As a result, the Cicig's mandate expired last year and would need to be renegotiated from scratch. The Economist seems not to have followed-up these reports.

JRcobar in reply to LatAm Gringo

Thanks for the repply, although I disagree on your statement that the increase corresponds only to "bond offerings" as in such a case it could not stand for 10 years. I do agree that Guatemala has weak institutions, I believe that the budget should be focus on the judiciary system and law enforcement/security, as with a small government there be less left for thiefs and better ways to watch the spending


When the writter reffers to the government revenues saying they are ten percent of the Guatemalan GDP, sounds insignificant, but if you could place into context the way the revenue has been growing up since 2000, when it was US$8,000MM and in just ten years it has come up to US$50,000MM you realize we are talking about a huge amount of money, specially if it is consider that the exchange rate has been stable. Meaning that in ten years with this increase in government spending there has been no change in poverty, please get then that BIG governments are not a solution, leave it to the market the people.



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