Guatemalan president and first lady apply for divorce

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Listen to this article

noicon

Audio file created from text revision dated 11:56, 28 March 2011 (UTC) and may not reflect subsequent edits to this report.

Audio Help / Audio Wikinews

According to judicial spokesman Edwin Escobar, Alvaro Colom, president of Guatemala, and Sandra Torres, the first lady, have applied for a divorce. It is said that the couple, who have been married for eight years, have done so so that Torres can apply for presidency.

The couple applied for divorce on March 11, Escobar said. He says the couple have given mutual consent and did not reveal the names of their lawyers.

Presidential spokesman Giusseppe Calvinisti has denied having any information about the planned divorce.

Before Escobar made the announcement, opposition leader Roxanna Baldetti had warned that the couple were planning to split to let Torres run for the presidency. Many political observers believe the couple filed their request so that Torres can stand to succeed her husband when his term ends in September, as the Guatemalan constitution does not allow close relatives of the president to do so.

Comments on the divorce have ranged from 'unthinkable' to 'a fraud', the latter description by Patriotic Party candidate Otto Perez. According to Perez, the divorce will not let the Torres run for presidency. "The law does not state a time frame of when a person ceases to be a relative of the President."

The Constitutional Court in Guatemala, the highest legal authority that determines the legitimacy of a presidential candidate, is to be taken over by new members in April. Legal experts doubt the impartiality of the new judges. They noticed 'ominous signs of political pressures' that would cause them to defend partisan interests rather than uphold justice.

Have an opinion on this story? Share it!

Sources

"Guatemala’s Presidential couple applies for divorce" — The Guatemala Times, March 21, 2010
"Guatemalan first lady to divorce for presidential bid" — TruthDrive, March 22, 2010
Delfín, M.. "Guatemala's first couple divorce so wife can run for president" — El País, March 23, 2010

Share this:

This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.

Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.

Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.

This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.

Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.

Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.