1993 Guatemalan constitutional crisis
| 1993 Guatemalan constitutional crisis | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Guatemalan Civil War | |||||||
Serrano (right) addresses a press conference after seizing power in a military-backed surprise coup de force, 25 May 1993 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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Executive branch * President of Guatemala * Council of Ministers |
Congress Constitutional Court Supreme Court of Justice Attorney General of the Nation Chief Attorney General Supreme Electoral Tribunal Guatemalan populace Supported by: Organization of American States United Nations United States | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Jorge Serrano Elías Gustavo Espina Aída de Castillo Roxana Baldetti Francisco Perdomo Arturo Alvarado Pérez |
Epaminondas González Arturo Herbruger Asturias Ramiro de León Carpio Jorge García Laguardia Others: José Rubén Zamora | ||||||
The 1993 Guatemala constitutional crisis took place in 1993 when then President Jorge Serrano Elías attempted a self-coup or autogolpe. On Tuesday May 25, 1993, Serrano illegally suspended the constitution, dissolved Congress and the Supreme Court, imposed censorship, and tried to restrict civil freedom.
The attempted self-coup was similar to the one carried out by Alberto Fujimori, but unlike Fujimori's, had no popular support: Serrano's action met with strong protests by most elements of Guatemalan society, at the forefront of which was the Siglo Veintiuno newspaper under the leadership of José Rubén Zamora. This was combined with international pressure (the Organization of American States condemned the autogolpe) and the army's enforcement of the decisions of the Constitutional Court, which ruled against the attempted takeover.
In the face of this pressure, Serrano resigned as president and fled the country. He was replaced on an interim basis by his vice president, Gustavo Espina. However, Espina was judged by the Constitutional Court to have been involved in the coup as well, and Congress replaced him with Human Rights Ombudsman Ramiro de León.