United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala

“ Although the ineffectiveness of State institutions in the prevention, investigation and punishment of violations and crimes has been obvious in Guatemala for decades, it has only recently been used by people to justify actions to take justice into their own hands, as in the case of lynchings. ”

“ The bearing and possession of offensive weapons by private individuals, private security companies, armed escorts and property guards are still common in Guatemala. The wide availability and diversity of munitions available on the market, some of which are highly lethal, are well known, yet there are no strict controls over the companies that market and distribute them. Arms smuggling and illegal arms trafficking are promoted by the permeability of borders and the lack of training and qualification of fiscal, customs, police and military personnel. ”

“ Imparting greater professionalism and dignity to the judicial career requires changes at all levels, including changes in mentality. It also requires a change in mentality to no longer consider the army as the last recourse in serious cases of impunity. ”

“ An increase in the resources of the Office is essential for its work of promotion and protection of human rights. Despite the budgetary limitations in 1999, the Office made some significant achievements, such as its good offices in support of the implementation of the recommendations of the Clarification Commission and the introduction of human rights education in the formal educational system through an agreement concluded with the Ministry of Education (plan for a diploma in human rights for teachers in public education) . ”

“ The Mission once more stresses the need for the Government to complete the process of ratification of the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons, by depositing the relevant instruments with the Organization of American States, as an effective means of fostering in the international community recognition of enforced disappearance as a crime against humanity. ”

“ The promotion of a culture of independence runs counter to the culture of dependence that is rooted in an institution which, for decades, remained passive in the face of the abuses committed by the de facto powers or were accomplices to those abuses. ”

“ Given the climate of insecurity affecting the population and, especially, the phenomenon of kidnapping, the State has allowed individuals or groups outside the competent institutions to take part in activities that should be carried out by police officers, prosecutors and judges. One example of this is the Ordóñez Porta case, in which members of military intelligence participated in procedures that properly belonged to the investigation stage ”

“ Since its first reports on human rights, the Mission has indicated that impunity is the greatest obstacle to the effective enjoyment of human rights in Guatemala. It has also noted the inability of the judicial system and of the auxiliary bodies responsible for investigations to determine criminal, civil and administrative responsibility in respect of crimes with high social impact and serious human rights violations. ”

“ The persistence, spread and seriousness of the phenomenon of lynchings urgently requires coordinated action on the part of the State institutions concerned. In addition to greater effort by the authorities, legislative measures must be adopted that reconcile community-based mechanisms for resolving conflicts with the formal justice system so that the procedures used would better respond to the needs of the population concerned.
A human rights policy 94. The worsening human rights situation in Guatemala, three years after the signing of the Peace Agreements, gives cause for concern. ”

“ On 7 November 1999, election day, the Mission was present throughout Guatemala, serving as a deterrent to any potential conflicts, and helping to create a climate free of violence and intimidation. On that day, the Mission toured 286 of the country’s 330 municipalities, visiting 750 polling stations. Its observations suggested that in nearly 80 per cent of the municipalities visited, political rights were exercised under normal conditions, with the restrictions imposed by current election law. ”

“ The mayor tried to resist arrest and struck the national Civil Police officer, José Antonio Torres, breaking his nose. He also uttered repeated death threats against the boy’s father and the owner of the café for having called the police. He was tried on charges of attempted murder, assault and uttering threats. However, on 22 March the child’s parents requested that all charges be dropped, forgoing all remedy, claiming that it had been an accident and that the union had helped them with their son’s medical bills. ”

“ The Mission has continued to record cases revealing the subsistence of illegal security forces linked to local public officials, especially certain mayors, and in the service ofprivate individuals. According to the information available, members of these groups are often former members of intelligence agencies, public security forces or paramilitary or para-police groups. These entities operate outside the law and may come to acquire sophisticated equipment such as high-powered offensive weapons and communications equipment. ”

“ With regard to the ownership, use and bearing of firearms by individuals, there is clearly an urgent need for the State to have effective and reliable mechanisms of control, given the indiscriminate proliferation of this type of weapons and their widespread marketing. ”

“ In addition to the legal framework, efforts are needed in two areas in order to improve the performance of justice officials: a firm commitment to the promotion of greater professionalism among judges and prosecutors and the fostering of a culture of independence. Formidable obstacles exist in both of these areas. Training activities are restricted by the low level of academic training provided by faculties of law. ”

“ With regard to the Xamán case, on 13 August 1999 the trial court at Cobán sentenced to five years’ imprisonment, commutable on payment of five quetzales a day, as perpetrators of the crime of culpable homicide, the sub-lieutenant in command of the military patrol and the 10 patrol members whose weapons were verified to have been fired. Another 14 soldiers were sentenced to four years of imprisonment, also commutable on payment of five quetzales a day, for the crime of “complicity in culpable homicide”. The appeal entered by the public prosecutor’s office is still pending. ”

“ The same is true of the investigation into the murder of Robinson Manolo Morales Canales, former Secretary of SINTRAMUZAC, who was murdered on 12 January 1999. To date there has been no light shed on the circumstances surrounding the murder, although one of the alleged perpetrators has been identified. In the case of Baldomero de Jesús Ramírez, former Financial Secretary of the Municipal Employees’ Union in Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa, Escuintla, the Mission noted that his disappearance, on 17 June 1999, coincided with serious labour conflict between the Union and the Mayor. ”

“ Changes such as these will not be achieved without political will on the part of the national leadership. In its reports, the Mission stressed the need to adopt measures to combat the use of threats or the fear of reprisals against individuals and officials who play key roles in criminal proceedings and the fight against impunity. It therefore welcomed the Act for the Protection of Persons Involved in the Conduct of Judicial Proceedings and Persons Linked to the Administration of Criminal Justice. ”

“ In its previous reports (see, for example, document A/52/946, annex, para.59) , the Mission drew attention to the need for Guatemala to have legislation to govern adoption; during the period under review no progress was made in this respect. A new legislative initiative was put forward on 6 April 1999, but it is awaiting the issue of a ruling both by the Congressional Commission on Women, Minors and the Family and by the Commission on Legislation and Constitutional Matters. ”

“ This allocation ensures the Office’s administrative autonomy and promotes greater functional autonomy, and has enabled the Office to increase its staff, which consists of 91 public defenders country-wide, supported by a large body of official public defenders at the metropolitan level. These factors are undoubtedly contributing to a substantial improvement in the operation of the service, although progress still needs to be made in administrative organization and in terms of greater efficiency of public defenders in the programme. ”

“ Tenth report on human rights of the United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala
I. Introduction 1. During the period covered by this report (1 January to 30 November 1999) , the United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) continued to verify compliance with all the Peace Agreements signed between the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca (URNG) . ”

“ The Mission is also concerned about its finding that members of these groups have led and participated in lynchings resulting in death, such as those which took place on 18 May in Tzuatzabé, Santa Lucía La Reforma, Totonicapán ”