What is Guatemala’s score on the 2022 Rule of Law Index?

at recent days Global Justice Project general Rule of Law Index 2022. Each year, I take this opportunity to remember the importance of the rule of law ideal, the way the index is composed, who are the best and worst rated in the index and to find out where they are located in Guatemala.

Defining the rule of law is not easy and there is no general consensus within academia. However, it has gained importance in recent decades. For example, Article 2 of Treaty of the European Union It mentions the rule of law as one of the Union’s values

The importance of the rule of law was also reflected in the United Nations. It is worth quoting an excerpt from Resolution A/RES/67/1 Which explained that: “We recognize that the rule of law applies equally to all states and international organizations, including the United Nations and its principal organs, and that respect and promotion of the rule of law and justice must guide all states’ activities and lend predictability and legitimacy to their actions.”

The Venice Commission has developed Rule of Law Verification Standards to monitor compliance more closely. In this ReportLord Bingham’s definition of the rule of law rules of law Like the case where:

“All persons and authorities within the State, whether public or private, must, and have the right to, comply with laws that are publicly enacted, which (generally) have future effect and are openly administered by courts.”

The Global Justice Project aims to “measure” compliance with the ideal of the rule of law on the basis of 44 indicators that fall into eight broader categories. In the 2022 index, 140 countries are measured.

The eight categories to be measured and Guatemala’s place in the ranking are the following: 1) the limits of government power (75/140); 2) lack of corruption (114/140); 3) Open Government (65/140); 4) Fundamental Rights (74/140); 5) Order and Security (125/140); 6) Regulatory Compliance (115/140); 7) Civil Judiciary (135/140); 8) Criminal Justice (127/140).

In the world ranking, in 2022, Guatemala is ranked 110 out of 140 countries. In 2021, Guatemala is ranked 109 out of 139 countries. In both 2021 and 2022, in the absolute index, Guatemala qualified with a score of 0.44 (0 being the worst score and 1 being the best). Its decrease in the ranking is a decrease in relative position by adding another country to the measurement (the same thing happened in 2021). Guatemala is sandwiched between Niger (109th) and Madagascar (111th).

The indicator shows that the main challenges in Guatemala are in the area of ​​justice and security. In terms of criminal justice, Guatemala sits between Mali and Mexico; on civil justice between Nicaragua and Afghanistan; In order and security between Bolivia and Uganda and in the absence of corruption between Bangladesh and Peru.

I add another item to think about. in the text rule of law For Lord Bingham, the author has laid out eight criteria for the rule of law. Standard Eight: “The rule of law requires that the state comply with its obligations under international law and national law.” If we add this element, how will Guatemala rate in this aspect?