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January 5, 2024 We write as academics and lawyers from across the globe who work in solidarity with the Salvadoran people to promote social and environmental justice, and who are gravely concerned about the criminalization of environmentalists, the systematic violation of human rights, and the flagrant undermining of democracy in El Salvador perpetrated under the ongoing State of Exception.
Many of us who have worked with and/or been inspired by the Salvadoran social movements for social and environmental justice were appalled by the arrest and detention of five Water Defenders from the department of Cabañas on January 11, 2023. The people arrested—Miguel Ángel Gámez, Alejandro Laínez García, Pedro Antonio Rivas Laínez, Antonio Pacheco, and Saúl Agustín Rivas Ortega—helped lead the struggle to save El Salvador’s stressed water supply from the notoriously water intensive and polluting metals mining industry. They played a central role in the events that led the Salvadoran government to pass the historic, first ever national prohibition on metals mining in 2017. A growing body of evidence shows that the case brought against the five Water Defenders by El Salvador’s Attorney General—for the alleged unlawful associations, alleged unlawful deprivation of liberty, and the alleged murder of a woman named María Inés Álvarez García Leiva on August 22 of 1989—is unsubstantiated by evidence, in violation of the National Reconciliation Law of 1992, in violation of the right to due process enshrined in the Salvadoran constitution, and likely politically motivated, as expanded on below. Lack of evidence: Despite the seriousness of these criminal accusations, the Attorney General’s Office filed the charges without evidence. The charges rest entirely on the testimony of a protected eyewitness who later admitted under oath that they had no first-hand knowledge of the alleged crime. Strangely, the body of the alleged victim has never been found. Moreover, several of those charged have alibis during the time of her death. Lack of due process: The lack of evidence has been compounded by a lack of due process. Once transferred to a permanent detention center, the five Water Defenders were not allowed to meet with their attorney to prepare for their defense for over six months. While the five were able to finally meet with their attorney upon being transferred to house arrest in September of 2023, this violation of the right to due process highlights the worrisome irregularities of this case. National Reconciliation Law: In addition to the lack of evidence and due process, the charges against the five Water Defenders should never have been brought in the first place. This is because the five have been charged as FMLN combatants for their alleged acts during the civil war. As such, they are covered by the 1992 National Reconciliation Law, signed as part of the Peace Agreement that granted amnesty to ex-combatants of the FMLN as a central element of the reconciliation and disarmament process that ended the civil war. Political Motivations: Growing evidence suggests that this case against the Santa Marta anti-mining activists is neither random nor motivated by the Attorney General’s genuine pursuit of justice. Rather, community groups in El Salvador believe that the case was filed as part of the Salvadoran government’s larger political strategy to allow for the entry of metals mining to El Salvador in violation of the 2017 law. For example, in 2021, the Salvadoran government created a new public agency called the General Directorate of Energy, Hydrocarbons and Mines to regulate the energy and mining industry, and then joined the international pro-mining institution Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development. The selective violation of the National Reconciliation Law to muzzle key leaders of the anti-mining movement while stifling any meaningful attempt to bring the largest perpetrators of human rights violations during the civil war—the Salvadoran military—to justice is a telling sign of the political motivations behind this case. The current difficulties of the Salvadoran economy—exacerbated by the disastrous losses associated with the adoption of Bitcoin as a national currency—likely add to the government’s motivations to bring back metals mining and silence the Santa Marta water defenders. The case of the Salvadoran Water Defenders has political stakes that go beyond the personal injustices perpetrated against the five accused. The politically motivated threat to El Salvador’s Water Defenders reopens the threat to Salvadoran’s democratically enshrined right to clean water and a country free of toxic metals mining. But the case is also emblematic of the broader violation of the human rights of those 70,000 plus Salvadorans detained under the current State of Exception without due process, of the ongoing political persecution of civil society organizations, labor leaders, and journalists who speak out against those human rights violations, and of the undermining of democracy. In light of the lack of evidence, failure to ensure the right to due process, the amnesty granted under the National Reconciliation Law that followed the 1992 Peace Accords, and the troublesome political motivations to renew metallic mining against the will of the Salvadoran people, we the undersigned write to request that the Attorney General of the Republic immediately drop the case against the Salvadoran Water Defenders. We request that the Office of the Attorney General respect and enforce the human rights of all Salvadorans, including the right to due process and freedom of association. Signed by (university listed for identification purposes only) Brazil Jose Darío Córdova Posada, Grupo Brasileiro de Pesquisas Sandor Ferenczi GBPSF Danilo Chammas, Ordem Dos Advogados do Brasil Canada Laura Macdonald, Carleton University Liisa L. North, Professor Emerita, York University, CERLAC Dr. Jose Garcia, Futurewatch Dr. Jose J Morales, MD, PhD Juan Francisco Carranza Cisneros, Carranza and Associates Shin Imai, Osgoode Hall Law School Lisa Kowalchuk, University of Guelph Dr. Catherine Nolin, University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) Giada Ferrucci, Western University Dr. Paula Butler, Wilfrid Laurier University Chris Vance, York University Meera Karunananthan, Carleton University Bernie Hammond, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Western University Kirsten Francescone, PhD, Trent University Valérie L'Heureux, Concordia University Catherine Coumans, PhD Colombia Cindy Forero, Abogada del Cajar Costa Rica Emily J Yozell, Abogada Patricia Alvarenga, Académica jubilada, Universidad Nacional, Costa Rica Denmark Dr. Vladimir Pacheco, Aarhus University Dominican Republic Dr. Laurent Ross, Universidad Tecnológica de Santiago El Salvador Saúl Baños Mirna Antonieta Perla Jimenez Andres McKinley, UCA Omar Serrano, UCA Ing. Andreu Oliva, UCA Luis Rubén González, University of California, Merced Xiomara Rodriguez, Terra Nuova Rafael Paz Narváez, Universidad de El Salvador Tomasa Elizabeth Fuentes Navarro, Asociación Americana de Juristas Rama El Salvador Lic. José Vicente Cuchillas Melara, Universidad de El Salvador MSC Óscar Canjura, Asociación Americana de Juristas Rama El Salvador Jonathan Espinoza, UTEC Maximiliano Omar Martinez, Abogado Ariela González, Abogada Sandra Elvira Rivera Cabrera, Abogada, Universidad de El Salvador Juan Ayala, Abogado Wily Alfonso Goitia Arze, UCA, Colproce Lic. Luis Gonzalez England Grace Blakeley, Tribune Magazine Dr. Marcus Colchester Finland Markus Kröger, Professor, University of Helsinki Dr. Rauna Kuokkanen, University of Lapland Teivo Teivainen, University of Helsinki Guatemala Victor Ferrigno, Abogado Constitucionalista, MadreSelva Ireland José Henríquez Leiva, University of Galway Italy Nora McKeon Dr. John Gilbert, University of Florence Mexico Dr. Ignacio Román, ITESO, Universidad Jesuita de Guadalajara Alberto Arroyo Picard, Universidad Autónoma de México – Ixtapalapa Dr. Miguel Angel de los Santos Cruz, Facultad de Derecho Dr. Hilary Goodfriend, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México Jaime Mauricio López, Escuela Nacional de Antropología e Historia Dra. Aideé Irina Tassinari Azcuaga, Universidad Autónoma de la Ciudad de México Dr. Ernesto Aréchiga Córdoba, Universidad Autónoma de la Ciudad de México Jorge Tripp, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México Nina Torres, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Xochimilco Dra. Engracia Loyo Bravo, El Colegio de México New Zealand Dr. Pascale Hatcher, University of Canterbury Philippines Ma. Victoria R. Raquiza, PhD, University of the Philippines Herbert Docena, PhD, University of the Philippines, Diliman South Africa Dr. Adrian Murray, University of Johannesburg Spain Dr. Ainhoa Montoya, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) Dr. Carlos Gómez Gil, Universidad de Alicante Dra. Estrella del Valle Calzada, Universidad de Valencia José Elías Esteve, Universidad de Valencia Thailand Sor. Rattanamanee Polkla, Lawyer, Community Resource Centre United States of America Dra. Mneesha Gellman, Emerson College Dr. Paloma Martinez-Cruz, The Ohio State University Diane Gifford-González, Distinguished Professor Emerita, University of California, Santa Cruz Dr. Nicholas Copeland, Virginia Tech Julio Gutiérrez, Universidad of North Carolina Steven Rizzo, Harvard University Lic. Elba E. Moreira Ms. Maureen Brett, Retired Attorney Jan Susler, Attorney Constance Gordon, PhD, San Francisco State University Ana Vieytez, University of California, Los Angeles Ali Kaba, American University Julia Fischer-Mackey, PhD, American University Mellissa Linton Villafranco, PhD, Arizona State University Janae Choquette, Esq., Attorney Pamela Martin, Coastal Carolina University Jorge Cuéllar, Dartmouth College Caitlin Schroering, PhD, University of North Carolina at Charlotte Mary Anne Perrone, Latin America Task Force of Interfaith Council for Peace & Justice Dr. Camille-Mary Sharp, New York University Eileen Weitzman, Attorney Matthew Garr, PsyD student Dr. Anne Reissner, Poverello House Robert Andolina, Seattle University Augusta Goldstein Dr. Carlos Rivas, The Ohio State University Katherine Borland, The Ohio State University Zsea Bowmani, The University of Toledo College of Law Rebekah Kaump, University of California, Davis Nathanael Joseph, University of California, Irvine Jackie Smith, University of Pittsburgh Jamie de Moya-Cotter, University of Wisconsin-Madison Victor Goldgel Carballo, University of Wisconsin, Madison Sarah Ann Wells, University of Wisconsin, Madison Nancy Escalante, Yale University Enrique Rivera, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles Jesse Broad-Cavanagh, Northeastern University School of Law Dr. Fabian Romero, Ohio State University Rev. John M. Caldwell, PhD Dr. Antonio Ramirez, Elgin Community College Gilbert Saucedo, Law Office of Gilbert Saucedo Alejandra Watanabe Farro, University of California Santa Cruz Richard Falk, Emeritus, Princeton University Teresa A. Velásquez, PhD, California State University, San Bernardino Angela Sanbrano, JD Lucia Zamora Chamorro Alexis Meza, New York University Madeline Baer, Occidental College Alfonso Gonzales Toribio, University of California Riverside Yvette Borja, Esq. United States Dr. Robin Broad, American University Professor Jonathan Fox, American University Professor Jesse Ribot, American University Yansi Pérez, Carleton College Joanna Beltrán, CUNY Dr. E.J. Zita, Evergreen St. College Dr. Michael Berghoef, PhD, MSW, Ferris State University Patrick Murphy, IECA Joanne E. Morrison, Attorney at Law LaDawn Haglund, John Jay College Dr. Sara Koopman, Kent State Jacey Anderson, Montana State University Dr. Molly Todd, Montana State University Cheryl Trine, Attorney Dr. Karen Melander-Magoon Dr. Elana Zilberg Dr. Ann Lutterman-Aguilar John Gershman, NYU - Robert F Wagner Graduate School of Public Service Kathy Glatz, retired professor Prof. Katherine Cushing, San Jose State University Dr. Tabitha Hart, San José State University Alejandro Artiga-Purcell, San José State University Costanza Rampini, San José State University Manuel F. Montes, Society for International Development Todd Davies, Stanford University Lawrence Mosqueda PhD, Professor Emeritus, The Evergreen State College Jeanne Hahn, Emeritus faculty, The Evergreen State College Dr. Peter Bohmer, The Evergreen State College Amy Argenal, University of California, Santa Cruz Liza Grandia, University of California, Davis Haejin Bang, University of California, San Diego Leisy Abrego, University of California, Los Angeles Valerie L Thatcher, PhD Tina Shull, UNC Charlotte Summer Lopez Colorado, University of California - Los Angeles William I Robinson, University of California at Santa Barbara Dr. Elana Zilberg, University of California San Diego Nathan Edenhofer, University of California Santa Cruz B. Richard Salas, University of California, Irvine Stacy Philpott, University of California, Santa Cruz Flora Lu, University of California, Santa Cruz Steve Depoe, Professor Emeritus, University of Cincinnati Miranda Cady Hallett, PhD, University of Dayton Professor Andrew B. Reid, JD, LLM, University of Denver Sturm College of Law Andrew Klapper, PhD, Professor Emeritus, University of Kentucky Alessandro Morosin, University of La Verne Dr. Mark Ginsburg, University of Maryland, College Park Professor Gerald Epstein, University of Massachusetts, Amherst Dr. Randall A. Lake, University of Southern California Kat Williams, University of Texas at Austin Christopher Helali, Vermont Law and Graduate School Elizabeth O’Donnell Gandolfo, Wake Forest University School of Divinity Dr. Christine Wade, Washington College Elisabeth Jean Wood, Yale University Manuela Picq, Amherst College Ailesha Ringer, PhD, Metropolitan State University Ching Ching Tan, San Jose State University Marisol Lebrón, University of California, Santa Cruz James K. Boyce, University of Massachusetts Amherst Elja Roy, University of Memphis Elizandro Umana, California State University, Los Angeles Namiko Kunimoto Rigo Fernandez Diane L. Middleton Mark Stern John Blanco, University of California, San Diego Organizations Blue Planet Project, Canada Socorro Jurídico Humanitario, El Salvador Panorama Económico, El Salvador Monitoring Committee on Attacks on Lawyers, International Association of People's Lawyers (IAPL), France Transnational Institute, Netherlands Katribu Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas, Philippines American Association of Jurists (AAJ), United States Central American Students Association, Harvard University, United States Doctors for Global Health, United States Foundation Earth, United States Extractivism and Society Research Cluster, University of California Santa Cruz, United States National Lawyers Guild - San Francisco Bay Area, United States National Lawyers Guild, Task Force on the Americas, United States Project South, United States |
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March 2025
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