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Accepted Paper:
From Nebaj to the capital: doubts, fears and hopes of the long Guatemalan electoral process.
Michele Grandi
(La Sapienza Università di Roma)
This paper aims to delve into the experience of the Indigenous Alcaldía of Nebaj during the demonstrations in support of the democratic transition from Alejandro Giammattei's government to that of Bernardo Arévalo, trying to give voice to the doubts, fears, and hopes of this complex mobilization.
Paper Abstract:
In 2023, elections in Guatemala recorded an unexpected result, leading to the victory of the presidential duo of Bernardo Arévalo and Karin Herrera of the Semilla party. Despite the outcome of the polls, the transition process from Alejandro Giammattei's government proved far from smooth, running into several legal and juridical impediments. The dreaded risk of an imminent 'technical' coup d'état prompted thousands of people to take to the streets, animating a protest that lasted more than 100 days and was articulated through several stages. From the beginning, note-worthing was the significant participation of the indigenous ancestral authorities, who, by leading these demonstrations, enshrined their prominence in the country's political life. As the result of ethnographic research in the Ixil Region, this paper intends to dwell on the experience of the Alcaldía indígena of Nebaj, both at an ideological and organizational level, trying to give voice to the doubts, fears, and hopes brought by these months of mobilizations, welcomed by many as a 'new phase' - or a new 'spring' - in relations with and within the state.