Arts. 1–14

Intrafamily violence constitutes a violation of human rights and, for the purposes of the present law, shall be understood as any action or omission that directly or indirectly causes physical, sexual, psychological or patrimonial harm or suffering, both in the public and in the private sphere, to a person who is a member of the family group, by relatives or a cohabitant or ex-cohabitant, spouse or ex-spouse, or a person with whom sons or daughters have been procreated.

The present law shall regulate the application of the protection measures necessary to guarantee the life, integrity, security and dignity of victims of intrafamily violence. It likewise has as its objective to provide special protection to women, boys, girls, young persons, elderly men and elderly women and persons with disabilities, taking into consideration the specific situations of each case.

The protection measures shall be applied independently of the specific sanctions established by the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, in the case of acts constituting a crime or misdemeanor.

The complaint or request for protection governed by this law may be made in written or verbal form with or without the assistance of a female or male attorney and may be filed by:

a)Any person, regardless of age, who has been a victim of an act constituting domestic violence.

b)Any person, when the aggrieved victim suffers from physical or mental incapacity, or when the person is prevented from requesting it by herself.

c)Any member of the family group, for the benefit of another member of the group, or any witness to the act.

d)Members of health or educational services, physicians who by reason of occupation have contact with the aggrieved person, for whom the complaint shall be mandatory pursuant to Article 298 of Decree Number 51-92 of the Congress of the Republic. Whoever omits to file such complaint shall be sanctioned as established in Article 457 of the Penal Code.

e)Non-governmental organizations and social organizations whose purpose is the protection of the rights of women, of minors and, in general, those that address family-related problems among their objectives.

f)If the victim is a minor, the victim shall be represented by the Public Prosecutor's Office, when the following circumstances concur.

1)When the aggression comes from whoever exercises parental authority, and,

2)When it concerns minors who lack guardianship and legal representation.

The institutions responsible for receiving the type of complaints mentioned in the previous article shall be:

a)The Public Prosecutor's Office, through the Women's Prosecutor's Office, permanent service and victim assistance office.

b)The Office of the Attorney General of the Nation, through the Unit for the Protection of Women's Rights.

c)The National Police.

d)The family Trial Courts.

e)Popular Law Offices.

f)The Human Rights Ombudsman.

Whoever receives the complaint shall refer it to a family Trial Court or a criminal Trial Court, as applicable, within a time limit of not more than twenty-four (24) hours.

All of the institutions mentioned in the preceding article shall be obligated to register complaints of intrafamily violence and to forward them to Judicial Statistics, for purposes of evaluating and determining the effectiveness of the measures to prevent, punish and eradicate it and of formulating and applying such changes as may be necessary.

The on-duty peace courts shall handle matters related to the application of the present Law, so that cases that due to time or distance could not be brought during regular hours may be addressed, the assistance provided therein being of an urgent nature.

In addition to those contained in Article 88 of the Penal Code, the Tribunals of Justice, when dealing with situations of domestic violence, shall order any of the following security measures. More than one measure may be applied.

a)To order the alleged aggressor to immediately leave the common residence. If he resists, public force shall be used.

b)To order mandatory attendance at institutions with therapeutic, educational programs created for that purpose.

c)To order the search of the dwelling when, due to domestic violence, the physical, sexual, patrimonial or psychological integrity of any of its inhabitants is gravely at risk.

d)To prohibit weapons from being introduced or kept in the dwelling house when they are used to intimidate, threaten or cause damage to any of the persons who are members of the family group.

e)To seize the weapons in the possession of the alleged aggressor, even when he holds a license to carry them.

f)To provisionally suspend the alleged aggressor's guardianship and custody of his minor sons and daughters.

g)To order the alleged aggressor to abstain from interfering, in any form, in the exercise of guardianship, upbringing and education of his sons and daughters.

h)To suspend the alleged aggressor's right to visit his sons and daughters, in case of sexual aggression against minors.

i)To prohibit the alleged aggressor from disturbing or intimidating any member of the family group.

j)To prohibit the alleged aggressor's access to the permanent or temporary domicile of the assaulted person and to his or her place of work or study.

k)To fix a provisional maintenance obligation, in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code.

l)To order the preventive attachment of the alleged aggressor's property. To apply this measure no security deposit shall be necessary.

In the discretion of the competent judicial authority, the attachment shall fall upon the dwelling house, the modification of legal or family practices and upon the property necessary to support the maintenance obligation in favor of the assaulted person and the corresponding dependents, in accordance with the law.

m)To make an inventory of the movable property existing in the dwelling nucleus, in particular household furnishings or others that serve the assaulted person as a means of work.

n)To grant exclusive use, for a determined time limit, of the household furnishings to the assaulted person. The dwelling and the furnishings protected under the family patrimony regime shall be especially safeguarded.

ñ)To order the alleged aggressor to abstain from interfering in the use and enjoyment of the work instruments of the assaulted person. When she is sixty (60) years old or older or is disabled, the alleged aggressor shall not interfere in the use and enjoyment of instruments indispensable for the victim to care for herself or to integrate into society.

o)To order the alleged aggressor to make reparation in cash for the damage caused to the assaulted person, or to the property indispensable to her to continue her normal life. Transportation expenses, repairs to the property, lodging and medical expenses are included. The amount shall be made effective in the form and procedure that the judicial authority deems convenient to ensure that it is complied with.

The security measures contained in the present Law may be accompanied by a telematic control device, for the effective protection of the physical integrity of the victims, for the time limit granted by the competent judge in the security measures applied; said device shall be placed on the alleged aggressor upon expiry of the time limit for opposition.

Protection measures shall not last less than one month nor more than six months, except that set forth in subparagraph c) of the preceding article. However, upon expiration of the time limit and at the request of a party, the competent authority may extend it.

A person who has assaulted their victim or another member of the family group more than once shall be understood as a repeat aggressor. Such fact may be invoked as grounds for separation or divorce.

The authorities of the National Police shall have the obligation to intervene in situations of intrafamily violence, on its own initiative or when requested by the victims or by third persons. In these cases they shall:

a)Aid and provide protection to the assaulted persons, even when they are inside their domicile at the time of the complaint, in accordance with the provisions of articles 208 and 436 of the Penal Code.

b)In case of flagrancy, detain the aggressor and place such person at the order of the judicial authority.

c)Draw up a report or police record on the facts that occurred, for which they shall collect information from family members, neighbors or other persons present and record their names, personal particulars and place where they may be located in order to require them in possible judicial proceedings.

d)Seize the weapons and objects used to threaten or assault and place them at the order of the respective judicial authority.

Non-compliance with these obligations shall be sanctioned as indicated in article 114 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

In all matters not provided for in this Law, the provisions of the Civil Code, Code of Civil and Commercial Procedure, Criminal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, Law of Family Tribunals and Law of the Judicial Branch shall apply suppletorily, without the foregoing implying an order of precedence.

The State shall create, through the Human Rights Ombudsman, an entity responsible for coordinating the delivery of workshops, short courses, seminars and conferences intended for male and female judges, auxiliary personnel of the Trial Courts, the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Office of the Attorney General of the Nation, prosecutors, forensic physicians, complaint-reception offices, the National Police, the Ministry of Public Health and other institutions that deal with domestic violence, its seriousness and consequences.

Pending the creation of the governing entity, the Office of the Attorney General of the Nation shall, in accordance with the functions stipulated in the Political Constitution of the Republic of Guatemala, be the advisory entity in charge of public policies promoting the prevention, assistance, punishment and eradication of intrafamily violence. Likewise, it shall monitor compliance with the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women. To fulfill these entrusted obligations, the Office of the Attorney General of the Nation shall act on the following terms.

1)It shall ensure that the authorities, their public officials, personnel and agents of the institutions conduct themselves in accordance with the obligations stipulated in this law.

2)It shall suggest appropriate measures to foster customary [practices] that support the persistence or tolerance of intrafamily violence.

3)It shall strengthen knowledge and observance of the right of women, boys and girls, older men and older women to a life free of violence and to have their rights respected and protected.

4)It shall recommend the modification of the sociocultural patterns of conduct of men and women, including the design of formal and informal educational programs appropriate for all levels of the educational process, in order to counteract prejudices, customs and all types of practices based on the premise of the inferiority of either gender or on stereotypes for men and women that legitimize or exacerbate violence against persons.

5)It shall promote the education and training of personnel in the administration of justice, police personnel and other public officials responsible for law enforcement, as well as personnel entrusted with applying policies to prevent, punish and eliminate intrafamily violence.

6)It shall stimulate educational, governmental and private-sector programs aimed at raising awareness among the population about problems related to intrafamily violence, legal remedies and corresponding redress.

7)It shall encourage the media to develop appropriate dissemination guidelines and thereby contribute to eradicating intrafamily violence in all its forms and, in particular, to enhancing respect for human dignity.

8)It shall stimulate research and the compilation of statistics and pertinent information on the causes, consequences and frequency of intrafamily violence, in order to evaluate State measures.

9)It shall promote, with international cooperation, the advancement of programs aimed at protecting the right to a life without violence and the exchange of ideas and experiences on the subject.

The State shall endeavor to offer treatment and rehabilitation alternatives to aggressors, taking into account, inter alia, their dual condition as victims and aggressors.

This Decree shall enter into force thirty days after its publication in the official gazette.