UN General Assembly
2018

After almost four decades of internal armed conflict, Guatemalans signed a strong and lasting peace, and we have undertaken the very arduous and difficult task of building and maintaining it. Building peace is no easy task, as the grave consequences of the armed conflict weakened our institutions. Guatemala is the only State to have signed a cooperation agreement with the United Nations Secretariat establishing an international commission against impunity, known as the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), which was originally to last for two years. In weighing the initiative’s value, the State of Guatemala decided to extend that period five times. Under the direction of three Commissioners, the CICIG had its high and low points, and as a sovereign State Guatemala decided not to request a sixth extension, as we believe that more than a decade has provided it with enough time to fulfil its mandate. At the same time, we have asked the Secretary-General to begin transferring capacities to those Guatemala institutions responsible for ensuring justice, in accordance with the mandate.