. >>> david mercer joins us live from guatemala city. david if you could, give us context on the allegations against the guatemalan president. how much antipathy against the president. >> there is huge antipathy. i just want to point out very quickly this press conference was the first time in a couple of weeks that the president has appeared in public to talk about these allegations against him. he issued a video conference about one week ago, where he came out quite defiant but also looked a little bit nervous. now he came out as confident in what he was saying. basically the long and short of it is he's not going to step down, calling for guatemalans to be respective of the process and the presumption of innocence. by that, he's alluding to the demonstrations, the largest of which took place a few days ago, last week on thursday, where an estimated 100,000 people came together from across the country in guatemala city to tell the president they want him to step down. and this is surrounding allegations that he is thought just involved

david mercer reports. >> reporter: tens of thousands of people packed in guatemala city's centraland want an end to government corruption and harsh punishment for those involved. there is widespread anger and frustration at a political system people say has failed them with calls louder than ever for president molina to step down. >> translator: we are tired but we know now is the time to rise up. guatemala has never been poor, the government has stolen from us, we need to rise up because we want to show the world that the people united can achieve change. >> reporter: the president televised on sunday of any involvement in a multi million dollar scandal over serve to bring more people to the streets. many schools and businesses were shocked to allow students and staff to take part. they were joined by groups from rural guatemala who have been blocking roads around the country for days. guatemala they be a country with poor and urban and rural together and that is what makes this protest so unique and people from across the country and different social backgrounds uniting forces f

online prompted questions about the military's role in civilian policing and david reports from guatemala cityse of power captured on video and guatemala soldiers viciously beat two men in a town two hours west of guatemala city and it's rumored they were delinquents and warned them this is how they were trained and the video went viral in guatemala with support of actions and others shocked by the barbarity and disregard for the law. guatemala authorities launched an investigation. on thursday the soldiers in the video were arrested and brought here to public prosecutor's office, over the coming days they will face a judge on abuse of authority and maltreatment of a minor. for more than 15 years guatemala's military helped with police and patrols to assist the police force created at the end of the country's civil war but unable to curb crime and the president himself a retired general ordered more soldiers on to the streets. analysts says that puts guatemala people at risk. a government accords states that combine patrols must be under police command. >> translator: it's worrying that in the

david mercer reports from guatemala city. >> reporter: an abuse of power captured on video.ously two young men in a town nflt it was rumored the young men were delinquents and the solders warned them that this is how they were trained. the video went viral in guatemala with some approving and others shocked. guatemalan authorities launched an investigation. on thursday the soldiers in the video were arrested and brought here to the public prosecutor's office. in the coming days they will face a judge on allegations of abuse of authority and maltreatment of a minor. for more than 15 years the military has helped with civilian policing, combined patrols were set up to assist a police force created at the end of the country's civil war, but police have been unable to curve violent crime, and the president ordered more soldiers on to the streets. this analyst says that puts guatemalans at risk, a government accord states that combined patrols must be under police command. >> translator: it's worrying that in the video, we don't see any police officers in the patrol. the police a

. >> reporter: tens of thousands of people packed into guatemala city's national park.s widespread anger and frustration at a political system people say has failed them, with calls for the president to step down. >> translator: we are tired but we know that now is the time to rise up. guatemala has never been poor. the government has stolen from us. we need to rise up, because we want to show the world that the people united can achieve change. >> reporter: the president televised deny on sunday only served to bring more people to the streets. many schools and businesses were shut to allow students and staff to take part. they were joined by groups who have been blocking roads around the country for days. guatemala might be a country of sharp divisions with rich and poor, urban and rural, seldom coming together, and that's what makes this protest so unique. people from across the country uniting forces for a common goal. >> reporter: the president watched the demonstrations on security cameras from the safety of a government office. just days ago a judge indicted the f

. >>> to guatemala city where demonstrators demand the end to government corruption, earlier in the week the country's supreme court made moves to impeachment proceedings against the president caught up in a fraud case. let's speak to david mercer in guatemala, tell us what is happening, what the protests are about. >> that's right, all morning we have seen people filing into the central plaza in guatemala city. there's thousands, if not tens of thousands here now. it's a carnival-like atmosphere, it doesn't change the seriousness of the objective of the people here today. they want to show their anger at corruption on the part of the government in guatemala, and are making demonstrates for the president to step down. now, this stems from a corruption case brought to live by prosecutors in april. there has been four months of protests and are culminating with 72 different groups. people from guatemala and all walks of life. there's a show of cores calling upon all politicians to clean up their act, bringing transparency to the process. guatemala's president is facing an impeachment proce

people gathered here say this is the only way to make their voices heard by decision makers in guatemala city. >> translator: it's important that we unite and put pressure on our politicians. we'll be here as often as we can because it's necessary. >> reporter: his presidency has been battered by a multimillion dollars corruption scandal. on tuesday his former vice president was charged with bribery, frayed and illicit association. and now the president faces an impeachment process launch by the attorney general. the former vice president says politicians no longer represent the interests of the citizens who elected them. >> it is like contained frustration over several years of mismanagement of public funds, of inefficiency in delivering the public services that the population craves for in a very uneven or unequal society like guatemala. >> reporter: and the president's refusal to resign is bringing more people to the streets. for four months they have been protesting against political corruption and on thursday afternoon organizers say more than 30,000 people will crowd into guatemala city

from guatemala city, we have the report. >> reporter: tens of thousands of people packed into guatemalaity's central park. they want an end to government corruption and harsh punishment for those involved. there's widespread anger and frustration at a political system people say has failed them with calls louder than ever for president perez-molina to step down. >> translator: we are tired, but we know that now is the time to rise up. guatemala has nefr been poor. the government has stolen from us. we need to rise up because we want to show the world that the people united can achieve change. >> reporter: the president telesized any involvement in a multi-million dollar scandal only served to bring more people to the streets. many schools and businesses were shut to allow students and staff to take part. they were joined by groups from gault maul la blocking roads for day. it might be a country with sharp divisions with rich and poor, urban and rural seldom coming together. that makes this so unique. people from across the country unite forces for a common goal. >> the president watched

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allan nairn, journalists, speaking to us from guatemala city, guatemala.ll keep you updated on what happens. democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed captioning. e-mail your comments to outreach@democracynow.org or mail them to democracy now! p.o. box 693 new york, new york 10013. [captioning made possible by democracy now!] - today on america's test kitchen, julia shows how to make latin american style flan, adam reviews cookie presses in the equipment corner, and bridget makes the ultimate chocolate crinkle cookies. right here, on america's test kitchen. america's test kitchen is brought to you by dcs. dcs: manufacturers of professionally styled indoor and outdoor kitchen equipment. at dcs, our mission is design that delivers,

we have this report from guatemala city. >> reporter: an abuse of power captured on video.malan soldiers viciously beat two young men in a town two hours west of the guatemala city. it was rumoured that the men were delinquents, and ch is how the men were trained. guatemalan authorities launched an investigation. thursday the soldiers in the video were arrested and brought to the public posterior's office. -- prosecutor's office. they'll face a judge over allegations of maltreatment of a minor >>> they helped with civilian policing. combined patrols were set up so assist a police force. but the police have been unable to curb violent crime and the president, a retired general ordered more soldiers on to the streets. the analyst says that the government must have patrols under police command. the police are trying to serve the community and guarantee the state for citizens. soldiers do not have specialised training. military seek to highlight the role and the support they receive at home. community leaders in the town where the video was report. >> it's an isolated incident.

let's speak to gaved mercer, in guatemala city. explain what is molina accused of? >> sorry, i couldn't quite hear what you were saying. if you were asking me what is going on here. what we saw over the past couple of hours are thousands of people filing into the central plaza, and you can probably see people behind me, waving the flag, the white and blue of the flag, and centering on the national palace, that you see behind me. while the protests have been going on since prosecutors reveal a scandal leading to the arrest and resignation of government. what is special about today is many called for the protest. people from different religious backgrounds and different parts of the country came together to join forces with union workers and parents, demanding one thing, that is that perez molina resign. >> so does it seem likely, as you mention, that he would have to resign or be impeached? >> that's right. on friday appears started a process. they requested the courts to start a process that could lead to the impeachment of the president. for potential involvement w

david mercer, al jazeera, guatemala city. >>> protesters are gathering in baghdad.ity is tight there as police check demonstrators as they rife to protest against government corruption among other things. on the line now is zana hoda. describe what is going on around you right now, and tell us more about what these protests are about. >> reporter: well, like you mentioned people have started to gather, but clearly the numbers are much larger than in previous weeks, previous fridays. we have to remember that for the first time an influential political party, the southern movement called on its supporters to participate in the rally. we have expecting, really, a much larger turnout than over the past few weeks. i met a civil activist here. you have to remember this started as a grassroots movement, a spontaneous movement, and i asked him what he felt now that a political party joined. he said well, we were afraid of this from the beginning, but at the end of the day, we do need support for the reforms to push through, and we are welcome the support just as long as the

david mercer has more from guatemala city. thousands have been filing into guatemala's central park in a show of force against corruption and the government. in particular here, people are calling for the president to resign. now, the president has been caught up in a multi-million corruption scandal that brought down his vice president. on friday, the country stds attorney-general put in a request to the court to have the president impeached for alleged involvement in the same multi-million corruption scandal. people say that they are tired of the corruption, and need to have a splits call change. now u the protests are taking place against the bagged of elections, taking -- background of elections taking place in guatemala in a week's time. they say the president's resignation would provide them with a start for change that they are hoping for. >> thousands of students marched through the streets of chile's capital. they are protesting delays in government plans to overhaul the education system. daniel schweimler reports. >>

images that have shocked guatemala, soldiers savagely beat two young men 80 kilometers west of guatemala citysoldiers asked the adolescence why they were running and warned them this is how they were trained. the video went viral, and has called into question the militaries role in helping to police the country. human rights workers says the video shows a clear abuse of power. they have requested police protection for the young men and their families. >> translator: using violence against violence isn't the way to resolve things. that's why they are laws proceed urs and laws that need to be respected and human rights also need to be respected by all people. >> reporter: in the department capitol, people were shaken by the video. maria says the soldiers acted like drunks fighting in the streets rather than government authorities. >> translator: i felt their pain inside me. i have children and it makes me think, what would i do if something like this happened to them. it's wrong. they were doing it for fun. >> reporter: street sellers like francisco are often victims of extortion, but rumors th

soldiers savagely beating two young men, 80km west of the guatemala city. the soldiers asked the adolescence why they were running and warned them this is how they were trained. the video went viral in guatemala, after surfacing over the weekend, and has called into question the military's role in helping to police the country. guatemala human rights workers show the video with a clear abuse of power. police protection has been requested for the young men and their families. >> using violence against violence is not the way to solve things, that's why there are laws. there are procedures and laws that need to be respected, and human rights need to be respected by all team. >> the department capital - people were shaken by the video. maria core says the soldiers acted like drunks fighting in the streets, rather than government authorities. >> i felt their pain inside me. i have children. it makes me think what would i do if something like this happened to them. it's wrong. they were doing it in fun. >> it sounds like francis were victims of extortion. rum our

a soldier savagely beat two young men 80 kilometers west of guatemala city. soldiers asked them why they were running and warned them this is how they trained. the video went viral over the internet this weekend and brings to question the military's role in policing the country. >> using violence against violence isn't the way to resolve things. that's why there are laws procedures and laws that need to be respected and human rights also need to be respected by all people. >>reporter: in the capital, people were shaken by the government saying the soldiers looked like drunks in the street rather than government authorities. >> i have children. i feel their pain inside me. it makes me think what would i do if something like this happened to them. it was wrong. they were doing it for fun. >>reporter: street sellers like fransico sanchez don't agree. >> they should be judged according to the law. this is not the way to resolve anything. >>reporter: while the people we spoke to here say they condemn the violence some comments on social media show some agree with

city. the soldiers warned them that this is how they were trained. the video went viral in guatemala with some supporting soldiers actions and others shocked by the disregard for the law. guatemalan authorities launched an investigation. >> on thursday, the soldiers were arrested and brought here to the public prosecutor's office. they will face a judge on allegations of abuse of authority and maltreatment that a minor. >> for more than 15 years, guatemala's military has helped with civilian policing, combined patrols set up to assess the police force created at the end of the countries civil war, but police have been unable to kirk violent crime and guatemala's president himself, a retired general ordered more soldiers on to the streets. analyst said that puts guatemalans at risk. a government accord states that combined patrols must be under police command. >> it's worrying that in the video, we don't see any police officers in the patrol. in spite of its institutional failings, the police are trained to serve the community, and guarantee the safety of citizens. soldiers in these c

involvement in a corruption scandal that has drawn thousands of protesters to the streets of guatemala cityatemala. one of the countries, you'll remember, with the highest amount of unaccompanied minors crossing our border. telemundo's newscaster, julio, is an expert on this. tell us what's going on in guatemala. >> the president of the government is being accused of corruption. so for the last couple of months, many high-rank officials have stepped down, and the president has been asked to resign. so this hasn't happened yet, and the law in guatemala says that congress has to vote for the president to lose his immunity. so far congress hasn't voted that way, so the president is still in power, and they are having elections this sunday. since it's a huge scandal, and a big political crisis, guatemala is going to elections in a couple of days. >> what's interesting is that the actual vice president of the current president is in jail today! but let's talk a little bit about why we care and should care. 25% of the unaccompanied minors who crossed into the u.s. last summer were guatemalan. thi

city. but first, to guatemala. >> there is an uprising. today there is a national strike , a mass demonstration calling for the followed president perez molina. if it develops, you can leave to the fall of the army and oligarchy and the system of hunger. the u.s. is try to stop that, the oligarchy is, but no one knows if they will succeed. amy: a general strike has been called in guatemala two days after the supreme court approved a request by the country's attorney general to impeach president otto perez molina in a corruption scandal. the matter is now in the hands of the guatemalan congress. we will speak with journalist allan nairn. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in virginia, vigils have been held for two journalists who were fatally shot on live television during the morning broadcast wednesday of the local news station wdbj. 24-year-old broadcast journalist alison parker and 27-year-old cameraman adam ward died after suspected gunman vester flanaga

traffic roads in myanmar's biggest city are not going away any time soon. >>> guatemala's president isuption and resigned in may over accusations she took nearly $4 million in bribes and prosecutors are also trying to impeach molina which sparked weeks and talking about wrongdoing and says he won't step down. el salvador says the killing on saturday was part of an internal purge and were members of the barrier 18 gang and attorney general says the order to kill them came from another prison. fire crews from australia and new zealand joined efforts to fight fires across the western united states and having one of its worst fire seasons on record and washington state the hardest hit and we report on how evacuees are coping. >> reporter: there is noel come mat but this lake side park campsite with two tents and a camper is home since they fled their north washington house a week ago. >> we left and was there roughly four hours and evacuated all of tonaskit. >> reporter: when flames from the fire showed no signs of slowing. >> we watched trees erupt and explode into huge columns of flames

when the unit states was not letting folks fleeing the violence, we are a i sanctuary cities if you are escaping guatemala, and that is foris them.accura but it iste now for criminals. it is a perverting of what a sanctuary city is.he and in los angeles, we do cooperate and coordinate with i.c.e. all of the time and any locality should.loca when we find a violent criminale and we check the immigration status, if deportation can be p part of it, that happens all of the time and it should happen.o but what we do demand is there e is a judicial order somebody not at that level and i.c.e. wants us to have a detainer.rs f we will do detainers from i.c.e but we want to make sure there is a judge saying there is something there.to and to me that is about lishin establishing trust andg making sure of the 550,000 people thate i said, people who are just lika most americans who are citizensr are law abiding, participate inc the public safety of our city. a don't think that local law loca enforcement official on a p is g traffic stop is going so say, e and by the way can i see your , immigration papers.th and if we

letting in certain folks who were fleeing the violence say okay we're sanctuary city if you're experiencing violence in guatemala, et cetera. now sanctuary's been morphed like sanctuary for criminals. which is not historically accurate. it's kind of a perverting of the words. in los angeles we do coordinate with i.c.e. all the time. any locality should. when we find a violent criminal and we check the immigration status, if deportation can be a part of it, that happens all the time. and it should happen. but what we do demand is there be a judicial order if we have somebody who is not at that level and i.c.e. wants us to have a detainer. we also will do detainers from i.c.e. but we want to make sure there's a judge who says there is something there. to me that is about establishing trust. making sure of that 550,000 people i said that people who are just like most americans who are citizens are law-abiding participate in the public safety of our city don't think that a local law enforcement official in a traffic stop is going to say, and by the way can i see your immigration papers. by the way, if we were doing