GUATEMALA'S NOMINEE FOR 2008 SECRETARY'S AWARD FOR

UNCLAS GUATEMALA 002101

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR WHA/CEN
DEPT ALSO FOR G/IWI ANDREA BOTTNER

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KWMN PREL KPAO PHUM KDEM ECON KJUS GT
SUBJECT: GUATEMALA'S NOMINEE FOR 2008 SECRETARY'S AWARD FOR
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN OF COURAGE

REF: STATE 126072


1. Embassy is pleased to nominate Carolina Roca,
Superintendent of the Guatemala Tax Authority (SAT),as
Guatemala's "Woman of Courage" for the 2008 Secretary's Award
(reftel) in recognition of her outstanding courage and
leadership in modernizing the SAT and advocating for tax
reform in Guatemala. Roca has been notified of the
nomination.


2. Biographical information:

Full Legal Name: Lesbia Carolina Roca Ruano de Obiols
Title: Superintendent
Institution: Guatemala Tax Authority (SAT)
Address: SAT Tower, 7th Avenue 3-73, Zone 9, Guatemala City,
Guatemala
Telephone: (502) 2362-7567
Email: croca@sat.gob.gt
Date of birth: April 15, 1956
Country of birth: Guatemala
Citizenship: Guatemala
Passport Number: 005233910


3. Justification for award selection: As Superintendent of
the Guatemala Tax Authority (SAT),Carolina Roca, 51, holds
one of the most visible and most challenging public offices
in Guatemala. Among her principal accomplishments during her
administration was modernizing the SAT and instituting tax
reform. Prior to her appointment in January 2005, the SAT
was beset by serious institutional problems, including
corruption, persecution of taxpayers, lack of vision,
inefficiency, and a negative public image. Her predecessor
was sentenced to 30 years in prison for money laundering,
fraud, and extortion, and other SAT personnel were prosecuted
for acts of corruption.

As Superintendent responsible for the collection and
administration of taxes and customs, Roca has spearheaded
institutional, legal, and cultural reforms to improve the
culture of compliance in a country historically resistant to
tax collection. By the end of 2007, Roca will have increased
tax revenues by 31.2 percent since December 2004, despite the
loss of various sources of revenue and the reduction of
tariffs. Her strategy has focused on expanding the tax base,
facilitating compliance, strengthening audits, and creating
strategic alliances to facilitate commerce. Under her
leadership, the total number of individual and corporate
taxpayers increased from 404,588 in 2004 to 441,349 in
September 2007.

Roca also implemented a process to professionalize,
modernize, and strengthen customs operations. When appointed
Superintendent in 2005, customs operations were fraught with
systemic problems, including discretionary and irregular
processes, lack of trained and reliable personnel, and
insufficient technology and information systems. Roca
dismissed 50 percent of the customs staff for corruption or
incompetence, and hired and trained new personnel.

Roca's efforts have resulted in significant reduction in
customs clearance time and improvement in safety standards in
international trade, including promotion of the Container
Security Initiative (CSI) program at Guatemalan ports. In
addition, her tenure has produced improved compliance with
Free Trade Agreement customs commitments, reduced corruption,
and improved customer service. Earlier this year, Roca
collaborated with the U.S. Department of Treasury to
strengthen SAT's capacity to audit oil imports, and to
establish and train a criminal investigative unit within SAT.
Her ongoing commitment to transparency and enhanced
container security has facilitated licit international trade.


Roca strives to meet international standards of excellence in
tax administration through legal, technical, and financial
independence, a visionary strategy, and a good management
team. In the context of Guatemala's violent environment,
where tax collection and customs inspection are potentially
life-threatening, Roca's determined efforts to change the
culture of compliance and to strengthen democratic governance
have been heroic, meriting international recognition.

Roca obtained a B.A. in economics from San Carlos University
and a Masters degree in Public Administration from Harvard
University in 1990. She served as Vice Minister of Finance
1993-94 and Vice Minister of Energy and Mines in 2004. In
January 2005, she was appointed Superintendent of the
Guatemala Tax Authority.


4. Ambassador's comment: As the above indicates, Carolina
Roca has done a superlative job as SAT administrator. I want
to highlight in particular the element of personal courage in
her services. Taking on Guatemala's entrenched legal and
not-so-legal business interests and overhauling a notoriously
corrupt bureaucracy is not only a multifaceted achievement
but a risky one. The "occult powers" here are not hesitant
to employ violence, including murder, to combat efforts such
as those undertaken by Roca. Implicit recognition of this
danger is the assignment of a round-the-clock security detail
and follow car for Roca. She has paid, and continues to pay,
a personal price for her public service. But the only way
forward for Guatemala is through the leadership and bravery
of women (and men) such as Carolina Roca.
Derham