Óscar José Rafael Berger Perdomo (; born 11 August 1946) is a Guatemalan businessman and politician who served as the 46th president of Guatemala from 2004 to 2008. He previously served as mayor of Guatemala City from 1991 to 1999.

Early years and family

Berger was born to an upper-class family with large sugar and coffee holdings. His paternal grandparents were Belgian immigrants. He graduated in law from the private Jesuit Rafael Landívar University. Berger was elected with 54.13% of the vote in the presidential election of December 2003, ahead of his rival from the center-left, Alvaro Colom. Only 46% of those registered on the electoral rolls took part in the vote.

Berger's party worked for national reconciliation following the civil war that gripped the country until 1996.

Mayor of Guatemala City (1991–1999)

As university classmates, Berger established a friendship with Álvaro Arzú, with whom they founded the then PAN civic committee, which would later become a political party. With the support of Arzú, Berger won a seat at the Municipal Council of Guatemala City, taking office on 15 January 1986. He would later join different municipal commissions that focused on Sports, Public Health, Agriculture, Livestock, and Food, and also became director of the Municipal Social and Sports Club, one of the most popular soccer clubs in Guatemala.

On 11 May 1989, Berger and Arzú registered the National Advance Party (PAN). The newly formed center-right party would participate and win in the 1990 Guatemalan city mayoral election. Berger would be sworn in as mayor on 15 January 1991 and become re-elected in the 1995 mayoral election.

1999 and 2003 presidential elections

1999 candidacy and election

During Arzú's presidential term, Berger expressed his interest in running for the presidency. On 27 June 1999, PAN would formalize his candidacy for the 1999 general election. Accordingly, Berger would step down from his mayoral duties and devote his time to the campaign.

Berger would run a campaign focusing on combatting poverty, increasing the country's wage limit, and being tough on organized crime. However, the populist rhetoric delivered by second-time presidential hopeful Alfonso Portillo would have a greater reach with the Guatemalan populace. Berger would go on to lose the second round of the presidential election; many speculated his loss as a punishment for the arrogance of President Arzú and the questionable ways state corporations were privatized during his mandate.

The electoral loss would cause conflict within the PAN party, which would later have a faction of the party leave to form the Unionist Party. During this time, Berger would break his relationship with Arzú, blaming his lousy governance for his defeat against Portillo's FRG party.

Domestic policy

alt=|thumb|200x200px|Visit of U.S. President [[George W. Bush to Guatemala on March 12, 2007. From left to right: Wendy de Berger, first lady of Guatemala, President Berger, President Bush and Laura Bush, first lady of the United States.]]

Berger authorized the construction of several highways in Guatemala and the remodeling of the Aurora International Airport. He undertook a reform of the army, recognized the responsibility of the state for war crimes, and appointed Rigoberta Menchu, a figure of the pacifist and indigenous movement, as special ambassador to the presidency. Most of the members of his government, however, were from the oligarchy.

Serious events would also occur that exposed the degree of corruption of several of Berger's officials, such as the PARLACEN Case, the Case of the seizure of the Pavón prison, the bankruptcy of the Coffee and Commerce banks, and the million-dollar robbery at the Aurora Airport.[http://www.albedrio.org/htm/documentos/ElComunicadorSocialNo9Ene07.pdf] Additionally, Berger would pursue a repressive policy towards the peasant movement. It is in this context that the massacre of Nueva Linda took place in August 2004, in which the police killed nine peasants. A CICIG report published in 2010 accused the government of Óscar Berger of carrying out "social cleansing" operations and ordering extrajudicial executions. Philip Alston, a rapporteur to the United Nations, had already, in 2007, denounced social cleansing operations involving the Guatemalan government. Berger would also remark in regards to the damage done by Stan: "It's not so bad, poor people are used to living like this."

Foreign policy

In March 2006, Berger would ratify the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).

In June 2006, the Berger administration, and the governments of El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua, signed the Central America-4 Free Mobility Agreement, which authorized the free movement of their citizens across borders between the four signatory states without any restrictions or checks.

Post-presidency

Berger's presidency ended on 14 January 2008, upon the inauguration of his successor, Álvaro Colom. The Colom administration would accuse Berger of leaving a floating debt of more than 4 billion quetzals.

See also

  • Politics of Guatemala
  • List of political parties in Guatemala

References

  • Biography by CIDOB