That's 60,000 murders during the last three presidential administrations. The figures that he produced will be pretty interesting to those who have not been been reading his blog or my blog.
Guatemala experienced a steady increase in homicides from 2000 up into 2009. The Zetas entered Guatemala in 2007 with signs of their violence becoming more visible in 2008. Then there was also the political instability surrounding the Rosenberg murder in 2009.
Homicides then decreased in both 2010 and 2011. While the violence suffered during Alvaro Colom's four-year term was the worst since the 1980s (an average of 6,100 killed each year), there was improvement in both the absolute number of homicides and the homicide rate during his last two years in office.
Why? It's a combination of factors most likely including the addition of several thousand police officers, a better trained police force, a more professional prosecutors office (Claudia Paz y Paz), new legislation passed by congress, and the work of CICIG (recent interview with Francisco Dall'Anese).
And the improved security situation, at least when it comes to homicides, has so far continued under President Otto Perez Molina.
