This is the third and last part in a series of informational texts published by NISGUA, translated from materials produced by FAMDEGUA (Families of the Detained Disappeared of Guatemala) and Verdad y Justicia, about the forced disappearance of Luz Leticia Hernández Agustín.

Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

Memory is resistance. For over four decades, her family has refused to let her story be erased — navigating courts, institutions, and silence in pursuit of truth. Their struggle reminds us that justice, however delayed, is never abandoned. As hearings are now underway, we will continue to share updates on their development.

Luz Leticia Hernández Agustín Case

44 YEARS OF IMPUNITY:

TRIAL BEGINS FOR THE FORCED DISAPPEARANCE OF LUZ LETICIA

HERNÁNDEZ AGUSTÍN

After more than four decades of waiting, May 5, 2026 the oral and public debate began for the case of forced of Luz Leticia Hernández Agustín in the Eighth Court of Criminal Sentencing, Drug Activity, and Crimes against the Environment of Guatemala. More hearings are planned May 26, 27, and 28 at 9am in the largest courtroom on the 5th floor of the Palace of Justice of Guatemala.

This process will judge the accused, Juan Francisco Cifuentes Cano, who served as the Chief of Command of Special Operations of the extinct National Police at the time of the events and who is accused in other processes of forced disappearance and serious human rights violations committed during the Internal Armed Conflict.

Luz Leticia Hernández Agustín was illegally detained in November of 1982, in one of the most violent periods of the Internal Armed Conflict. She was 25 years old. After her illegal detention, she was never brought before a judge and has been missing ever since. Her case reflects the grave human rights violations committed by state structures and intelligence apparatuses that, according to the report of the Commission for Historical Clarification, practiced systematic forced disappearance, leaving more than 45,000 victims between 1960 and 1996.

44 YEARS OF WAITING, TRUTH AND JUSTICE

Throughout the past 44 years, the Hernández Agustín family has sustained a tireless fight for truth and justice. In 2001, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights found that the state of Guatemala violated multiple fundamental rights of Luz Leticia, as well as those of other victims related to this case. Despite this, progress has been hampered by delays and appeals that have delayed access to justice.

The beginning of this trial represents a historic opportunity to clarify the facts, determine responsibilities, and advance in the struggle against impunity that has marked this case for decades.

In this process, the Hernández Agustín family, together with FAMDEGUA, participate as joint plaintiffs, pushing the case with the aim of clarifying the facts, punishing those responsible, and knowing the whereabouts of Luz Leticia.

WE DEMAND THAT THE NATIONAL JUSTICE SYSTEM:

  1. Apply justice, guaranteeing an independent, impartial, and non-interference process, as a guarantee of non-repetition, so that these crimes do not happen again.
  2. Prosecute and punish all those responsible, both materially and intellectually, including those who were part of parallel state intelligence structures.
  3. Recognize the responsibility of the State of Guatemala in these events and in the  serious human rights violations.

Today, more than ever, memory and dignity demand answers.

JUSTICE FOR LUZ LETICIA!

UNTIL WE FIND HER!

Guatemala, May 2026.