The International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala reconfigured its activities during the turmoil sparked by the Jimmy Morales administration’s move to block Commissioner Iván Velásquez from coming back. Within this framework, Loreto Ferrer Moreu assumed responsibility for coordinating operations and overseeing institutional communications in the country.
The International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) went through one of the most delicate phases of its history when, in September, then-President of Guatemala Jimmy Morales barred Commissioner Iván Velásquez from entering the country.
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The decision came amid intense institutional tension, following the CICIG’s launch of high-profile corruption investigations. The measure sparked national and international reactions and necessitated a redefinition of the Commission’s operations to ensure the continuity of its work in Guatemala.
Reorganization of the CICIG in Guatemala
In light of this situation, the United Nations confirmed Iván Velásquez as head of the CICIG and established an operational framework aimed at sustaining operations within the country. Within this framework, Loreto Ferrer assumed responsibility for operational coordination and institutional communications in Guatemala, while Velásquez continued to lead the Commission from abroad.
The reorganization aimed to uphold the commissioner’s authority while ensuring the institution maintained its operational footprint on Guatemalan soil during a particularly delicate period. When the entry ban was enforced, both Velásquez and Ferrer were in Washington handling institutional matters. Ferrer managed to return to Guatemala and take on that responsibility locally.
Days later, Guatemala’s Attorney General, Consuelo Porras, requested a meeting with Loreto Ferrer to learn about the Commission’s representation structue. As the CICIG later reported, during that meeting the institutional arrangement adopted to ensure the continuity of the work was explained.
At this stage, Ferrer’s role focused on managing the Commission’s daily operations in Guatemala and ensuring the flow of its institutional communications, a responsibility carried out amid a particularly intricate political and judicial environment.
Instead of altering the agency’s formal leadership, the arrangement was crafted to keep its operations running in the country while preserving its essential mandate and avoiding any disruption to its principal areas of work.
The Role of CICIG and Its Crucial Importance for Guatemala
Iván Velásquez’s ongoing term as commissioner ensures that the CICIG’s overarching mandate stays intact, concentrating on backing the Public Prosecutor’s Office, offering technical support for intricate investigations, and advancing institutional reforms tied to combating corruption and impunity.
Created in 2007 through an agreement between the Government of Guatemala and the United Nations, the CICIG was conceived as a mechanism to support the Guatemalan state in investigating criminal structures infiltrating public institutions, strengthening the capacities of the justice system, and promoting reforms oriented toward the rule of law.
Throughout its history, the Commission has been led by three commissioners. The first was the Spanish jurist Carlos Castresana, followed by the Costa Rican Francisco Dall’Anese. Subsequently, Iván Velásquez took the helm during a period marked by cases of significant public impact and by a growing confrontation with political sectors affected by the investigations.
An institutional response designed to address extraordinary conditions
The restructuring implemented after the prohibition on Velásquez’s entry left the essence of the CICIG’s mandate unchanged, yet it emphasized the need to modify its operations in response to an extraordinary situation.
Given this, the presence of Loreto Ferrer in Guatemala came to play a crucial role in sustaining the Commission’s institutional operations at a time of high political and judicial sensitivity.
