2023
NOT THE USUAL COUP Soldiers appear in the streets, then on television and declare the sitting leader has been ousted and the country's institutions are suspended, its borders closed. That is usually how a coup d'etat takes place. Follows the condemnation from foreign capitals and world organizations, pleading for a return to the constitutional order. But this recipe for takeover can vary, and this may be why the aftermath of presidential elections in Guatemala has not received the same attention as the coup in Gabon despite the cries by president-elect Bernardo Arevalo that one is also occurring there and he is being blocked from taking power after being declared winner with 58% of the vote. The 64-year-old sociologist certainly caused an electoral surprise, first when he made the cut for the run-off and then by upsetting first round winner Sandra Torres, a former first lady, in the second round. Now Arevalo says the establishment is out to deny his victory. “Ther