Ersatz Constitution

Article 77 of Guatemala's new constitution (TIME, Jan. 16) guarantees civil rights "except in the case of activities against the security of the state, perturbation of the peace, public calamity or invasion." Under such troubled conditions, states the article, a special "Law of Public Order" can be invoked, to replace the constitution during the emergency. Last week the slow-moving Constituent Assembly put the finishing touches on the new public-order law--though only over a storm of objections from opposition Assemblymen and the independent press.

The new law classified emergencies under five loose-fitting categories, running the crisis gamut from a state of prevention ("when perturbation of public order is imminent") to out-and-out war. The various states of emergency can be declared by simple executive decree in all categories except war (which requires a congressional vote). Faced by the mildest disturbance, the President can dissolve political parties, order troops to fire on demonstrators, permit police to enter homes without warrants, force newspapers to accept censorship or shut down.

With Congressman David Vela, editor of the daily Impartial, leading the way, the opposition heatedly pointed out that even after the 1944 overthrow of Dictator Jorge Ubico no such drastic law was passed because, as Vela put it, "it would give legal weapons of oppression to the government." Vela said that President Carlos Castillo Armas is "a tolerant man, but let us remember that we are legislating not only for now but for the future as well--and the future may bring a capricious or oppressive President."

Protest, however, was in vain. For one reason or another, 21 of the pro-government Assemblymen failed to answer roll call last week when the last of the law's 58 provisions came 10 a vote. Whether that was a gesture of confidence or abstention made no difference: in the final balloting, opposition to the standby constitution was crushed 27-12.

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