Paraguay court rejects expelled senator's appeal, citing procedural technicality

Paraguay's Supreme Court has rejected an unconstitutionality action filed by expelled senator Kattya González regarding her removal from Congress. The court's extensive 94-page ruling revealed a striking coincidence of arguments among ministers who had previously attended a "secret meeting" with President Santiago Peña last December.

Ministers Alberto Martínez Simón, Luis María Benítez Riera, María Carolina Llanes, and César Diesel, all participants in the December meeting with Peña, adhered to Martínez Simón's arguments for the majority rejection. Martínez Simón contended that a modification to the Senate's internal regulations, approved in December 2023 (resolution 429/2023), which mandated a two-thirds majority for expelling a member, was not yet in effect at the time of González's expulsion on February 14, 2024.

Martínez Simón's reasoning hinged on the fact that while the regulation was approved on December 20, 2023, its minutes were not ratified until the extraordinary session on February 14, 2024. The resolution itself states it takes effect the day after its approval, meaning it would have been active from February 15, 2024. This technicality was used to argue that the two-thirds majority requirement did not apply to González's expulsion.

This interpretation is contentious, as Senator Eduardo Nakayama questioned the regulation's validity during the February 14 session. Then-Senate President Silvio "Beto" Ovelar confirmed it was in effect, yet González was expelled by 23 votes, falling short of the supposed two-thirds majority (30 votes). The court's decision to prioritize the timing of the minutes' approval over the session's proceedings and the Senate president's confirmation has raised significant questions about the legal justification for González's expulsion.

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The United States stands with the Nicaraguan people, who, like Rivera, want a free Nicaragua.