Óscar Humberto Mejía Víctores (December 9, 1930 – February 1, 2016)[1][2] was a Guatemalan military officer and politician who served as the Head of Government from August 1983 to January 1986.

A member of the military, he was head of state during the apex of repression and death squad activity in the Central American nation.

[3] When he was minister of defense, he rallied a coup against President Ríos Montt, which he justified by declaring that religious fanatics were abusing the government.

Mejía Víctores became then de facto president and justified the coup by saying that "religious fanatics" were abusing their positions in the government and also because of "official corruption."

Revival of democratic government did not end the "disappearances" and death squad killings, as extrajudicial state violence had become an integral part of the political culture.

[5] By the time Mejía Víctores assumed power, the counterinsurgency under Lucas García and Ríos Montt had largely succeeded in its objective of detaching the insurgency from its civilian support base.

The counterinsurgency program had militarized Guatemalan society, creating a fearful atmosphere of terror that suppressed most public agitation and insurgency.

The victims included several U.S. Agency for International Development employees, officials from moderate and leftist political parties, and Catholic priests.