The
Tidings
October
1, 2004
GUEST
COLUMN
New winds of justice for El
Salvador
" For me
personally, the verdict provided a strong sense of healing and closure. For
almost 25 years, I had carried a bag of heavy rocks with me everywhere I went.
The day that I testified, I left that bag of rocks with the U.S. justice
system".
By
Francisco Acosta
On
September 3rd, Judge Oliver W. Wanger of the Federal District Court in Fresno issued a historic ruling finding Alvaro Saravia, a
former captain in the Salvadoran air force and current U.S. resident, liable for his role in organizing
the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero in El Salvador 24
years ago.
The
lawsuit, for which I served as a witness, was brought under a little-known
U.S. law that permits civil
suits against individuals who committed human rights violations in other
countries if they live in or visit the United States. Judge Wanger ruled
that the evidence clearly established Saravia’s responsibility for organizing
the murder. He also determined that the murder constituted a “crime against
humanity,” and that it was part of a pattern of systematic violations of human
rights for the purpose of perpetuating the oligarchy and the military government
in El
Salvador.
Within days of Judge Wanger’s judgment, religious
leaders in El
Salvador called for a lifting of the 1993
Amnesty law and a reopening of the criminal investigation into the killing,
committed on March 24, 1980 by a single bullet while the Archbishop was
celebrating Mass. Salvadorans everywhere celebrated the verdict. For our people,
Oscar Romero is like Martin Luther King for the United States or Mahatma Gandhi for
India. The vindication of Romero’s
legacy is a vindication of all of the 75,000 civilians who were killed during
El
Salvador’s bloody civil war.
Salvadoran President Tony Saca, in an August 28
interview with the Associated Press, said he was reluctant to dig up his
country’s dark history. “I don’t think that [by] opening up the past [or]
looking for those responsible … we are going to achieve a better country.”
Similarly, Salvadoran Ambassador to the United States René Leon and former
leftist rebel commander Joaquin Villalobos were both quoted in a
WashingtonPost.com op-ed of September 9th as opposing the repeal of the amnesty
law because it would “reopen … wounds.”
But
while the bloodshed in El Salvador ended in 1992, peace has
not arrived. As part of the peace accords between rebel leaders and the
ruling Arenan government, the United Nations established a Truth Commission
which implicated individuals from both the left and the right in human rights
violations committed during the conflict. However, the right-wing government of
El
Salvador immediately declared a blanket amnesty
for all those implicated. In effect, this amnesty subverted any real chance of
healing and reconciliation.
I
testified in the trial against Saravia that 72 of my own relatives were killed
during that bloody decade. My family has never had the chance to fully
work through this tremendous personal loss; this will happen only when the
truth is revealed and impunity brought to an end. Therefore, the
wounds are still open -- they cannot be re-opened because they were never
closed. When one understands this context, it is clear why El Salvador is the second most violent country in
Latin America after Colombia.
Both
the ruling Arena party and Mr. Villalobos have reason for concern if the 1993
amnesty law is repealed. The Arena party was founded by Major Roberto
D’Aubuisson, who was implicated in many atrocities, including the assassination
of Archbishop Romero. The Truth Commission named the formerly leftist Villalobos
as the top commander responsible for the murder of several mayors, and there is
strong additional evidence that he bore responsibility for the murders of
several other civilians, including El Salvador’s most prominent poet,
Roque Dalton.
The
verdict in the Fresno case, in a court of the
most powerful country in the world, has helped to provide a sense of closure for
all Salvadorans who were victimized by the violence, including almost two
million who currently reside in the United States. At last, a step has
been taken to reverse impunity.
For
me personally, the verdict provided a strong sense of healing and closure. For
almost 25 years, I had carried a bag of heavy rocks with me everywhere I went.
The day that I testified, I left that bag of rocks with the U.S. justice
system.
But
important additional steps are needed in order to close fully this dark chapter.
All those responsible must be held accountable for the atrocities that were
committed during El
Salvador’s 12 years of civil war. I propose
that the amnesty be lifted and that a process of justice similar to the one that
took place in South
Africa be established. As part of that
country’s post-war process, those who committed politically-motivated crimes
against humanity were required to confess their role in the commission of the
atrocity before they could be pardoned. Telling the truth is painful, but it is
the right thing to do. Only then will Salvadoran society begin to heal, to
forgive, and to reconcile.