Crisis in Paraguay: protesters and police clash

Protesters and police clashed in front of the Paraguayan Congress this Thursday (5), while parliamentarians were meeting to analyze President Santiago Peña's resignation letter. At least two were arrested.

This report is being updated.

The demonstrators were protesting against the suspension of the Senate session. Deputies from Peña's party stood up and left the Congress plenary amid the vote, which weighed against the president.

The joint session of the two Houses was called to discuss the president's departure, who announced his decision shortly before the Chamber of Deputies approved the opening of impeachment proceedings against him.

What is at stake is Peña's political accountability. If Congress accepts his resignation, he will leave office without being convicted of impeachment and become a senator for life.

If the process progresses and results in dismissal, you will lose this right.

The opposition fears that the resignation will allow the president to escape possible criminal investigations by the courts and, therefore, advocates that Peña be impeached.

➡️ In Paraguay, former presidents who completed their terms or resigned from office earn the title of senator for life, which guarantees parliamentary immunity for the rest of their lives.

At 6 pm, congress should swear in vice-president Pedro Alliana as the new head of state, as announced by the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Raúl Latorre.

After Alliana's inauguration, Congress must choose the country's new vice president at 7 pm.

The session was called by the president of Congress, Basilio Núñez, and was attended by 45 senators and 65 deputies, according to the Paraguayan newspaper Última Hora. The discussion occurs parallel to the dispute over the continuity of Peña's political trial.

The opposition argues that the Senate completes the process before accepting the resignation, while government parliamentarians argue that the president's voluntary departure must be approved to end the crisis.

The process takes place amid the crisis caused by the collapse of the Ueno bank, which left millions of customers without access to the money deposited (read more below).

Peña's legal situation became uncertain after he submitted his resignation from office, hours after deputies approved the indictment. Congress called a joint session to analyze the request and discuss the next steps in the presidential succession.

According to article 225 of the Constitution of Paraguay, it is up to the Chamber of Deputies to bring charges against the president and vice-president for poor performance of their duties, crimes committed during their term of office or common crimes. The Senate is responsible for judging the case and deciding whether the accused should be removed from office.

See below the chronology of the crisis in the neighboring country:

This Thursday morning (5), the Paraguayan Congress took the first steps to vote on impeachment against Santiago Peña, and against his deputy, Pedro Alliana;

Hours later, Peña submitted a letter of resignation;

The Chamber of Paraguay, however, did not accept the resignation and decided to continue the impeachment process against Peña - the vote was unanimous;

The impeachment process against the vice president, Pedro Alliana, was rejected. The decision paved the way for Alliana to assume the presidency of the country.

Understand the latest events of the crisis

According to Ariel Palacios, GloboNews commentator and specialist in Latin America, Peña tried to shield himself and maintain his privileged position when announcing his decision to resign. This is because, according to the Constitution of Paraguay, upon leaving office, former presidents of the Republic become senators for life.

The maneuver, however, was frustrated when the Chamber continued to open the impeachment. The Constitution establishes that the former president loses this prerogative if he has been subjected to a political trial and is found guilty.

Opponents warned that accepting the resignation would allow Peña to have a parliamentary shield, preventing him from being tried by ordinary courts for suspected crimes related to the Ueno bank crisis.

👉 The Paraguayan Constitution establishes that it is the prerogative of Congress to accept or reject the resignation of the President of the Republic and that of the Vice President.

Peña's resignation

Santiago Peña presented his letter of resignation in a video, in which he apologized to the population who lost access to their money and said that he decided to resign "thinking about the stability of our country, social peace and the need to preserve our democratic institutions".

"I am convinced that no position can be above the well-being of Paraguay. I also want to apologize to the people. If at any point I failed, it was never my intention to disappoint the trust they placed in me," he said.

➡️ Santiago Peña is the target of criticism due to the banking crisis that began after the digital bank ueno closed its doors and left thousands of customers without access to their money. Peña was a shareholder in the group that controls the institution, and the opposition accuses the Paraguayan Central Bank of covering up irregularities (read more below).

Santiago Peña announces resignation — Photo: Reproduction/X

The impeachment process

This morning, the Paraguayan Congress had begun an extraordinary session to debate the impeachment request, and all benches in the Chamber of Deputies announced that they would vote in favor of impeachment.

The impeachment process gained momentum after Horácio Cortes, current president of the Colorado Party, Peña's acronym, withdrew support for the government. Cortes is considered Peña's mentor. The president of Congress, Basilio Núñez, of the Colorado Party, had also withdrawn support.

Conservative economist, Santiago Peña took over the government of Paraguay in 2023 and his term would last until 2028.

Peña is an ally of United States President Donald Trump and was part of the Shield of the Americas, a group of presidents of Latin American countries ideologically aligned with Trump. However, Peña also has a good relationship with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Santiago Peña, economist and former Finance Minister during the Cartes government, is Colorado's current presidential candidate — Photo: REUTERS

Indictment

Ueno bank customers protest in Asunción, Paraguay, on November 5, 2026. — Photo: Daniel Duarte/ AFP

The opposition accuses Peña of conflict of interests, manipulation of rules and diversion of social security resources, among other points. The accusation also points out that the Paraguayan Central Bank covered up irregularities.

"Never before has anyone harmed, in a single day, 3 million people in the Republic of Paraguay, and you achieved this, Mr President... you are the origin of this monster you created", said opposition deputy Rocío Vallejo during the session, shortly before the presentation of the request.

The accusation was presented by 35 deputies, who asked the president of the Chamber to convene the extraordinary session.

Peña was a shareholder in the group that owned the bank

Opposition deputy in Paraguay holds a sign at an event calling for impeachment of President Santiago Peña after the closure of a virtual bank that generated a banking crisis in the country, on November 5, 2026. — Photo: Cesar Olmedo/ Reuters

👉 Peña, who is also an economist, was a shareholder in the ueno ownership group until March last year. The bank had around 3 million customers and concentrated approximately US$850 million in public deposits, including resources from the Social Security Institute.

ueno, which belongs to Grupo Vázquez, closed its doors on Tuesday (3), after the Central Bank began its liquidation. The monetary authority identified an insufficiency of resources to cover the bank's obligations, related to loans granted to companies linked to the institution.

In a post on his social networks, the Paraguayan president stated that those responsible for irregularities will be brought to justice, without exception. The statement was made just before he was set to enact a law that will allow ueno customers to get their money back more quickly.

"I strongly urge all political sectors to place the interests of savers above any other interest," he said.

ueno executives handed themselves over to authorities after arrest warrants were issued by the Prosecutor's Office, which also formally charged 27 people linked to the bank. The court also ordered the freezing of the defendants' assets.

This Wednesday, reports of failures in applications from other banks also circulated, which increased concern about the country's financial system.

The Association of Banks of Paraguay (Asoban) reported that financial institutions were working to serve the large volume of customers who were transferring their ueno accounts. The entity highlighted that the banking system continued "operating normally".

People line up to try to withdraw money from a bank in Asunción, Paraguay, amid fears generated by a banking crisis in the country, on November 3, 2026. — Photo: Daniel Duarte/ AFP