Guatemala president-elect proposes restarting transition process in coming days

Guatemalan President-elect Bernardo Arevalo has sent a proposal to current President Alejandro Giammattei seeking to restart meetings for the transition process as of this Sept. 25, he said in a statement on Thursday. Arevalo had paused his participation in the transition process last week after the nation's top prosecutor's office raided facilities run by the main electoral tribunal.

Guatemalan President-elect Bernardo Arevalo has sent a proposal to current President Alejandro Giammattei seeking to restart meetings for the transition process as of this Sept. 25, he said in a statement on Thursday.

Arevalo had paused his participation in the transition process last week after the nation's top prosecutor's office raided facilities run by the main electoral tribunal. The prosecutor's office has been investigating Arevalo's party over accusations of registration flaws.

The Organization of American States (OAS) said it was "extremely concerned" about the raids on the electoral tribunal in which sealed ballots were opened, saying it violated Guatemalan electoral law. On Thursday, Arevalo said the initial transition proceedings were threatened by the escalation of the "illegal political persecution from the prosecutor's office."

Arevalo added he had sent a letter to Giammattei outlining his proposal to restart transition meetings with various offices of the executive. Arevalo said his transition team is confident that as tensions subside and legal actions are resolved, "progress can be made."

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