AGREEMENT ON CONSTITUTIONAL REFORMS, ELECTORAL REGIME IN GUATEMALA, SIGNED ON 7 DECEMBER
Press Release
SG/SM/6126
CA/25
AGREEMENT ON CONSTITUTIONAL REFORMS, ELECTORAL REGIME IN GUATEMALA, SIGNED ON 7 DECEMBER
19961210 The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for Secretary- General Boutros Boutros-Ghali:On Saturday, 7 December, at 12 pm (local time) in Stockholm, Sweden, the delegations of the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca (URNG) signed the "Agreement on constitutional reforms and electoral regime". The signing ceremony took place at the Foreign Ministry of Sweden, in the presence of Pierre Schon, Swedish Minister for International Cooperation, Immigration and Asylum Policy. The ceremony was attended by representatives of the countries members of the "Group of Friends" of the Guatemala peace process, United Nations officials and the diplomatic corps. Also present was a delegation of personalities representing a broad array of sectors of Guatemalan society. The agreement was signed on behalf of the United Nations by Jean Arnault, moderator of the peace talks.
The Agreement signed on 7 December contains a series of proposals for constitutional reforms, which the Government will promote before the Guatemalan Congress within 60 days of the signing of the final peace agreement, which is scheduled for 29 December. The main focus of the proposals is the recognition of the identity and rights of indigenous peoples in Guatemala, and the mandate and structure of the country's security forces. The Agreement also provides for the establishment by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal of a Commission for Electoral Reform, to review and modernize the various stages of the electoral process. As with previous agreements reached in the Guatemala peace, the parties requested the Secretary-General to undertake verification of the Agreement on constitutional reforms and the electoral regime.
On 8 December, the delegations of the two parties and the United Nations travelled to Madrid which, from 9 to 12 December, will host a round of negotiations on the penultimate item on the negotiating agenda, which concerns the URNG's integration into political life in Guatemala. The Secretary- General congratulates the parties on their latest agreement and wishes them success in the forthcoming round.
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