A scheduled vote in Guatemala’s Congress on amnesty for war crimes was suspended on Wednesday when several lawmakers walked out, leaving the session without a quorum.

The proposal would have freed more than 30 former members of the security forces and paramilitaries convicted of human rights violations during Guatemala’s long armed conflict. The bill would also halt thousands of investigations.

But it drew impassioned opposition from victims’ groups and human rights activists who rallied in front of the Congress in Guatemala City on Wednesday.

International organizations and foreign governments, including the United States, called on Guatemalan legislators not to move forward with the vote. On Tuesday, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights ordered the Guatemalan Congress to withdraw the proposal.