From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord@igc.apc.org>
Newsgroups: soc.rights.human
Date: 01 Oct 92 13:12 PDT
Subject: Ecuador: the Restrepo case
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1476700576:000:4020
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!hrcoord    Oct  1 13:12:00 1992


From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord>
Subject: Ecuador: the Restrepo case

/* Written  5:07 pm  Sep 30, 1992 by gn:peacenews in cdp:wri.news */
Human rights and nonviolence in Ecuador: the Restrepo case

AUTHOR = JEAN DE WANDELAER

##In Latin America, nonviolence is very closely linked to the
struggle in defence of human rights, but this is often an ambiguous
link. It could be said that those working for the defence and
promotion of human rights have resorted to nonviolence not for its
virtues but for lack of an alternative.

Members of organisations such as the Guatemalan Mutual Aid Group
(Grupo de Apoyo Mutual; GAM) or the "madwomen" of the Plaza del Mayo
in Argentina know that violent actions would rebound on them. These
groups -- both of them are composed mostly of women -- chose
peaceful means of protest so that they could be heard and thus
obtain their objectives. The Restrepo case, as it is known in
Ecuador, has been more clearly defined as an explicitly nonviolent
struggle.

During the 8th Forum on Human Rights, which took place in Quito in
September, this case was analysed in depth by the working group on
alternative forms of resistance. The Restrepo family -- Colombians
who have lived several years in Ecuador -- suffered the
disappearance of their two sons, aged 15 and 17, in January 1988.
The two youths had not been involved in any political or student
activities which might have "explained" their disappearance.

Disappearances are common in Latin America. In the majority of
cases, the armed forces or other state "security" forces have been
identified as responsible for the kidnapping, torture, murder, and
disappearance of the bodies of those who are held to be
"subversives" or who are otherwise not in step with official
doctrines of national security. For the victims' families, the dis-
appearance is invariably traumatic and has grave psychological
implications.

The Restrepo family has lived a nightmare since January 1988, but
have carried on a remarkable struggle in search of the truth about
their sons' fate. An international commission established at the
family's insistence confirmed that the Ecuadorean police were
responsible for the abduction, torture, and death of the two boys,
whose bodies were evidently thrown into a lake.

For Sr Restrepo, the fate of his sons is being treated as a state
secret. After more than four years, not one official body has
recognised any of the facts of the case. The new president of
Ecuador, Sixto Duran Ballen, said recently that the demonstrations
organised by the family served no purpose, were alienating the
public, and would not bring the two boys back to life. The generals
who ran the 1976-83 "dirty war" in Argentina said the same thing
about the mothers of the Plaza del Mayo ... 

From 1988, the Restrepo family wrote regularly to the media, which
at the beginning ignored their letters, but little by little, some
journalists began to pass on information. As the case picked up
momentum, Sr Restrepo received initiations to present his family's
struggle to various organisations, meetings, and demonstrations -- a
tireless and essential task.
A vigil began to take place very Wednesday outside the presidential
palace, bringing together family members, representatives of
grassroots organisations, and members of other families who had
endured similar tragedies. This solidarity, which is openly
expressed at the meeting place in front of the palace, serves as a
constant thorn in the side of the government.

translated by Ken Simons

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* Reprinted from Peace News 2359 (October 1992).                  *
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