Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-14
GUATEMALA CLAMPS DOWN
ON OFFICIAL CORRUPTION
New Law of Probity Is Seen Outgrowth
of Recent Revolution in
>t]
Latin America.

Eonstrated that he knew his people. And
that he knew that those who were then
exaltlng him would be concoetinp
charges tomorrow. Thus, believing in
that old maxim that an ounce of pre4 :
yention Is worth a pound of cure, he,
in advance, rendered himself immune
from the charges that afterward might
| come.
Not only that. President Ubico in
! vtted his collaborators in the admins
! tration to follow his example. The re-
suit OF such an invitation and of the
trend OF honesty which the new Chief
Executive wants to make characteristic
Of his government, is this law of prcbity,
unique and startling, which the :
Guatemalan authorities have drawn up !
and the Guatemalan legislators have
just passed upon.
When President Ubico decided to,
make known his private wealth before -
assuming office, he probably had in
mind certain recent episodes of Latin
American history. Charges of misuse !,
Of national income by the outgoing =
executives had been almost inseparable
from the Inauguration Of each new
president in Latin American republic.
In many instances, they had been the
chief cause of armed reyolts which
brought about the downfall of admin J,
istrationS before their legal terms had
expired
Particularly during the preceding few
months. these charges had been invari,- =
ably heard in connection with the revo-
lutions that were successful in Bolivia,
Peru, Argentina, Brazil and Panama.
Charges, Accompanied Revolts.
Whether justified or not-whether
legally accurate or merely the result Of :
political passions and revenge-these. e
accusations had accompanied the over
throw of every ousted Latin American
executive during the last epidemic of
revolution. ~a~
Even now two former South Ameri-
can presidents are awaiting in prison
the outcome OF heated trials for shady
governmental transactions during their
terms of Office They are charged with -,
having profited with national funds and
having lst their friends do likewise.
Former ministers of state and other
high government officials in four Latin =
American countries were facing similar"
| charges last year. and either hid or
fed beyond the border while these were
investigated. ::
The newspapers of Argentina, Brazil. =.
Bolivia, Peru and Panama were for
| many weeks full of these reports OF
legal proceedings ordered by the newly
established authorities against the heads -
Of the overthroWn regimes in those +.
Southern nations.
The arousing of keen sense of re- +
SponSibility was one of the directly out
standing characteristics of the recent -
political movement in Latin America.
And one which made it so different
from the classic, profltless and purely -
personalistic upheaVals that for whole
century had been filling the history of
the neighboring republics.
No Improvement Before.
Heretofore, a so-called popular re-
volt in a Latin American country re-
suited in but the substitution of a GER
tain group of men for another, with no :
signs of improvement in administrative
methods or in the abandonment of i'm
moral practices in the exercise of power.
In general, the faults and misdesds
| Of the deposed authorities whose lack
| of scrupleS in financial matters had
| started the revolutions were looked upon
| with indifference after these reyolts rad z
succeeded. The guilty ones usually :,
walked out elegantly to enjoy in some
distant country the fortunes piled up .
under cover of government positions.
their successors being more concerned
with the thought of getting rid of them
than with their punishment.
This time, however, the ouSted eXecu-
| tiveS found themselves in a different :
situation A Tribunal of National Sane ?
! ton was created in Peru the day after
the successful termination of the revo- :
| luton to investigate the personal for {.
tune of deposed President Leguia, his
sons and his political comrades. After
careful inquiry which lasted several
months, this tribunal convicted the Lee =
guiaS of embezzlement of public funds z
and condemned them to refund to the ,
national treasury the sum of 25,000000
'SoleS.'
Irigoyen Is Tried.
| In Argentina ex-President Irigoyen :
and some of his closest political friends :,
are being tried for mismanagement of
the national income and illegal prof
| iteering through means of government
funds. In Brazil former President Luiz =
was held prisoner for some time under :
similar charges, although later released
I and eXiled to Europe. In Bolivia an ac- ;
cuSation against ousted President SileS
is still pending before Congress. In f,
Panama charges against the recently
overthrown regime of Senior Arosemena
are in progress.
The epidemic proved to be general
general and contagious. 1t is to make
his government immune from it that
President Ubico of Guatemala has now
enacted his law of probity. a vaccina- s.
ton. as it were, against possible con- :
tagion.
(Copyright. 1917