The blockade and protests day in rejection of the implementation of the mandatory civil liability insurance for all types of vehicles evidenced the weaknesses in the Bernardo Arévalo government to carry out urgent and necessary actions. Analysts and strategy experts believe that government weakness occurs by a Disconnection with reality and a bad direction in its official communication.
The government responded to the blockages, which paralyzed the city during a whole day causing losses and effects to the population, with an invitation to dialogue with those who are dissatisfied with the civil liability insurance of drivers. The government defends insurance and justifies it because traffic accidents are the main cause of deaths in the country, above crime, said the Secretary of Communication of the Presidency, Santiago Palomo, at a press conference.
The great absent in the crisis is the president. “The presidential figure must be exposed when necessary, and this case climbed very fast. The presence of the president is important, but more than his presence, what he says to calm the crisis,” said political scientist Renzo Rosal.
“There are a few groups that want things to remain the same, and we cannot afford it,” added Palomo and explained that the regulations published by the Ministry of the Interior (Mingob) seek to “enforce the law, comply with the law,” and recalled a ruling of the Constitutional Court (CC) of 2022.
The official urged to work in the regulation of civil liability insurance against third parties and occupants of all types of vehicles. “We understand the legitimate manifestations, but that this does not give space to opportunistic groups,” said Palomo, “that adversize the government and that want to generate premeditated chaos.”
Weaknesses pass invoice
The reflection of the latest protests is due to a lack of planning from the presidency of Guatemala, which did not visualize all the scenarios after the implementation of the agreements that force the acquisition of damage insurance to third parties, in accordance with Renzo Rosal and Edgar Ortiz, experts in constitutional policy and law. Both have analyzed the social actions and the responses that the Arévalo government has had.
“It seems to me that there is a huge problem of distancing reality and that happens. When I think I have certain factors insured, but reality says otherwise, what is in the middle is a bad measurement”Rosal said.
For the analyst, the central axes of the Executive “did not do their job”, since the justification of the insurance was the accident of the Belize bridge, which, according to him, could give time to the government to do a study and measure the repercussions.
At Rosal, the dialogue announced by the Táger secretary, must have a better harmony to what is announced at the press conference. “Just listening for listening is not a dialogue; an active dialogue allows you to listen to different voices and reach an agreement.”
But for him, the way in which the crisis has been handled caused the government to lose support that led him to take possession. “If any support had a few days ago, now it does not have it. That means there are no allies, and it is part of the bad measurement. I must have the allies or groups close because it is key to the legitimacy of any government. ”
Ortiz believes that the decision does not miss all support for the Executive, but leaves it in a fragile situation. “If there is a loss of trust because there is no information, there is a feeling that it will hit the people’s pocket And that positions groups like 48 cantons. But I don’t think it’s a total loss of support, although fronts are opened, it is a fact. ”
The expert emphasizes that the government’s decision with insurance is correct, but deficiencies in the Executive personnel in key positions for decision making are causing a crisis. “Talking about allies is difficult, but I think it leaves us as a lesson that it is not enough to be right. The measure is correct, it is technical, but we must understand that the way in which a policy is implemented is sometimes more important than the background itself.”
Communication and absence
Two other factors that influence not controlling the crisis, at experts’ discretion, are the mismanagement of government communication and the absence of President Arévalo, Who has not given the face to the blockades that have affected thousands of Guatemalans.
Rosal has seen deficiencies in the Secretariat by Palomo, which, far from calming the tension, could aggravate it. “Political communication says that a conflict is not going to mitigate with an attitude of arrogance and authoritarianism; a dose of moderation is needed, of appropriate understanding of the opposite expressions.”
Ortiz also emphasizes that a better form of communication is needed when setting positions. “For the Government, backward would be a big defeat. Perhaps the call to dialogue is correct, but it must be a credible dialogue and with a more open negotiation.”
Ortiz agrees that it is necessary to see the actions that the president, as leader of the nation, is taking. “I think that the president may have, as a representative of the National Unity, take the baton. It is a leadership issue, and here the presidential leadership is needed.”
The Ministry of the Interior published on March 17 four government agreements that regulate the obligation to hire insurance, as established by the Traffic Law in force since 1996. Documents regulate details of the civil liability insurance against third parties and occupants of motorcycles, cargo transport, private vehicles and passenger transport, with or without remuneration.
The documents regulate details of the civil liability insurance against third parties and occupants of motorcycles, cargo transport, private vehicles and passenger transport, with or without remuneration.
The private secretary of the Presidency, Ana Glenda Táger, one of the officials closest to President Bernardo Arévalo, intervened at the press conference to defend the implementation of insurance, which resulted in one year of work and dialogue with different organizations.
There are groups that were not represented or part of the process, who requested space to speak, and the government is willing to “listen to different voices to gather what it is possible to do and what not,” said Táger.
Gradualness and programming could lower tension
Miguel Ángel Balcárcel, a specialist in peace culture, dialogue and conflict resolution, says that carrying out a meeting between government authorities and representatives of the dissatisfied is already an expression to seek an exit to the conflict, if it is taken into account that the protests for disagreement for the insurance are territorial expressions because they focus on the city of Guatemala and in some parts of the province.
To lower the tension of the conflict, according to Balcárcel, there must be attitudes and behaviors of will of both parties. He also mentions that implementing the mandatory insurance for the whole country is not viable, and must analyze the situation of each region and each vehicular group.
According to the Peace Culture Specialist, the disagreement focuses on those who have never had vehicle insurance and the most viable for them is to think that it is a business between the government and the insurers, because it was a process that suddenly became known, without there being information campaigns.
“It was precipitously, sufficient information had to be created and had figures for how much is the cost of insurance for all types of vehicles. No one knew that they had a year of working the regulations with different sectors as they announced,” he said.
Balcárcel recommends that insurance be implemented with “gradual and programming” in the regions with the highest incidence of road accidents. “Insurance should not be the same for those residing in the urban area and for those who reside in the rural area. Even the nature of the vehicles they use are different, the same treatment cannot be given in the municipalities, different measures must be applied to different regions,” he said.