Photo by NISGUA. Jennifer Harbury sits before the court on July 16th, 2024.
On July 16th, Jennifer Harbury, the widow of Efraín Bámaca Velásquez (also known as Comandante Everardo), was to declare for the first time in front of a Guatemalan court, more than three decades after her husband was disappeared. Just before the hearing started, Judge Ruth Noemí Camey Equité granted a fraudulent writ of protection to one of the defendants, which prevented Harbury from testifying.
Here is the statement FAMDEGUA published in response:
Guatemala, July 17th, 2024
Bámaca Velásquez Case
Association of Family Members of the Detained and Disappeared of Guatemala- FAMDEGUA-
DENOUNCES
That after 32 years demanding justice for the forced disappearance of Efraín Bámaca Velásquez, once more this has been denied by the co-opted system of national justice, which intends to favor with impunity war criminals which have done, and continue to do, so much damage to our society.
Last Tuesday, the day of July 16th of 2024, Jennifer was to declare for the first time in front of a Guatemalan court, more than three decades after the events. Minutes before starting, Judge Ruth Noemí Camey Equité, of the 2nd Pluripersonal court of First Instance Criminal, Narcoactivity, and Crimes Against the Environment, fraudulently granted a final injunction by virtue of:
First: The plaintiffs were not notified, vetoing our right to appear as interested third parties.
Second: That the State of Guatemala has signed international treaties and conventions that oblige it to investigate, prosecute and, if necessary, punish all those responsible for serious human rights violations, including torture and forced disappearance. Therefore, the resolution does not affect other persons who have been part of the process as defendants or accused, however, the hearing was not held.
Third: There are still legal remedies that can reverse this ruling, which was not taken into account by the judge for the hearing.
This resolution, delivered unexpectedly, shows that the illegal actions of these criminals of war have been maintained in impunity, as a result the manipulation of the justice system and the co-optation of the State, and is added to the illegal resolutions which have been issued for years, like the fraudulent dismissal delivered in 1999, through which it seeks to continue promoting impunity in the case of Bámaca Velásquez.
Victims, family members and survivors join with and support the historical struggle of Jennifer Harbury in the search for her husband Efraín Bámaca Velásquez, known as Comandante Everardo. And we will continue to promote actions of justice and truth.
FAMDEGUA Jennifer Harbury
Here you can read the statement in Spanish
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