From: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel)
Subject: Proceso 544: Human Rights
Followup-To: alt.activism.d
Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
Organization: PACH
Date: Sat, 9 Jan 1993 08:10:16 GMT

/** reg.elsalvador: 128.0 **/
** Topic: Proceso 544: Human Rights 1992 **
** Written  9:53 am  Jan  8, 1993 by cidai@huracan.cr in cdp:reg.elsalvador **
From: cidai@huracan.cr (Centro de Informacion Documentacion y Apoyo a la Invest. - UCAJSC)
Subject: Proceso 544: Human Rights 1992

Center for Information, Documentation and Research Support (CIDAI)
Central American University (UCA)
San Salvador, El Salvador
 
PROCESO 544
December 31, 1992
 
IDHUCA REPORT:
Human rights in 1992
 
Introduction
 
     At the beginning of 1992, the expectations of the Salvadoran
people -in the context of a just and widespread euphoria- were
centered around ways to overcome the disrespect for human dignity
which had prevailed for so many years as a result of repression and
the war. Our institution participated in this process, although we
did express some concerns. At the time, we asserted that the
accords reached in the transition toward peace constituted "a
phenomenal attempt, at least on paper, to propitiate a rational and
integral solution capable of confronting, in a definitive fashion,
the worst incidents of human rights violations" (ECA 519-520). In
the same manner, we expressed confidence that the accords provided
"the foundation necessary for overcoming some of the factors which
generated the social conflict." We certainly considered these
commitments as "solid instruments for building a more just and
democratic society which respects human dignity."
     In the conclusion of our first analysis of the final document
of the negotiating process, we maintained that the process had
"generated the proper conditions for uprooting the endemic evils of
Salvadoran society," which was confirmed in the documents drawn up
throughout the course of the negotiations. Nonetheless, our initial
concerns had to do with how the accords would be put into practice.
     "In order that these gains do not become merely good
intentions condemned to dangerous neglect, a beautiful but
ineffective dead letter; in order that they become transformed into
life and hope, there is a need for an alert, aware and ready
public, an unshakable citizens' will determined to guide them to
safe harbor. The contents of the accords must provide a firm
groundwork for the creation of a new mentality. For this to happen,
civil society -their beneficiary- will have to push and support
them constantly. Otherwise, we run the risk of repeating the
tragedy."
     At this stage, therefore, we could now examine what occurred
between January and December, as well as the outlook for the
future. With regard to the human rights situation, it is possible
to formulate a diagnosis on the basis of three fundamental areas:
the search for truth and justice, the consolidation of internal
mechanisms for the protection of human rights, and the current
situation of respect or disrespect of these rights.
 
Truth and justice
 
     Much was said on this point throughout the year. The postures
have ranged from the facile but dangerous "clean slate" mentality,
all the way to those who wish to establish general and specific
responsibilities in past incidents. The visible expressions of all
these positions were reflected in the work carried out by the two
bodies created during the negotiations between the government and
the FMLN: the Ad Hoc Commission and the Truth Commission. The
first, charged with guiding the purging of the Armed Forces, merits
special mention. Why is this? In contrast to the Truth Commission,
the Ad Hoc has already finished its work and presented its report;
but above all, the purging of the Armed Forces has been one of the
most problematic aspects -perhaps the most complicated and
controversial- of the process of carrying out the commitments made
by both sides.
     The consequences of the Commission's work once again prompted
the discordant tones of those who, from within the Armed Forces,
the government and the ruling party, were demanding the
preservation of the military institution from those who "wanted to
destroy it," in what constitutes a singular way of understanding
the process of pacifying and democratizing Salvadoran society. In
the same fashion, growing rumors -some from reliable sources- were
heard concerning hidden accords between top government officials
and at least one top FMLN leader, Joaquin Villalobos, to determine
the fate of certain officers who, according to the moral conviction
of the Commission's members, deserve to leave the institution due
to their records of human rights violations. Amidst these
controversial and troublesome positions, and in order to avoid any
dangerous deviations from a process aimed at civilizing our
society, we reiterate an important reflection we have made
throughout the year. None of these situations should happen if all
sides were acting with the transparency necessary for building
solid democratic coexistence in El Salvador.
     Public knowledge of the work of the Ad Hoc Commission could,
in the first place, help dispose of all speculation around supposed
attempts to "destroy" the Armed Forces, since we would learn who
must abandon the military and why. All this would have the goal of
guaranteeing the professionalism of the military as well as strict
compliance with its constitutional mandate; it would help get the
military, as Mons. Romero said, to "be more concerned about placing
its prestige, its power, its intelligence at the service of a
society created in the heart of God." It would also close the door
on any possible negotiations conducted behind the backs of those
who suffered the violations of their fundamental rights.
     In order to pass definitive judgment on the Truth Commission,
we must wait for its report, which is mandated to inform the public
about the results of its inquiries about "serious incidents of
violence which have occurred since 1980, whose mark on Salvadoran
society demands with greater urgency that the public learn the
truth," as well as "provisions of a legal, political or
administrative nature which could be projected from the results of
the investigation" and which the Commission feels it would be
relevant to recommend, including "measures aimed at preventing the
repetition of such incidents" and "initiatives oriented towards
national reconciliation." However, it is still worth venturing some
considerations on the basis of the experiences we have shared with
this important body.
     In the first place, it should be noted that the scope of the
Truth Commission's efforts will only cover a small part of the wide
universe of human rights violations which occurred throughout the
country during the seventies and eighties. And there are logical
reasons for this. From the point of view of the Truth Commission,
it has to do with its limitations of time and resources compared to
the enormity of the overall problem. From the point of view of the
people who have suffered, it has to do with the lack of information
necessary to establish specific responsibilities in each case,
along with the fear and mistrust which still prevail.
     So it is even more important that the members of this
commission reflect objectively during the course of their work. If
Thomas Buergenthal, Reinaldo Figueredo and Belisario Betancurt view
the information collected as a representative sampling of the
actions which, as a whole, make up the systematic practices against
the lives, freedom, security and physical integrity of hundreds of
thousands of persons in El Salvador, they will be helping us take
an important step forward in the search for peace. Only then can we
meet the challenge of the future, which forces us to "look behind
us in order to discover the design of an institutional plan which
attempted to exterminate broad sectors of the population, in an
intransigent fashion, as if their political opposition made them
enemies"; to "identify the systematic practices utilized to that
end"; to "locate the persons and institutions who made violence the
only form of relationship permitted between State and society,
annulling the rule of all civil and political rights"; and to
"establish the truth in those cases of human rights violations
which were committed on the insurgent side" (Proceso 523).
     We need to address another aspect related to recommendations
we would like to see from the Truth Commission. If they really hope
to help prevent a repeat of the painful incidents which we all
lament, the measures taken to implement the Commission's
recommendations must attempt to attack the endemic evil which made
it possible, and still makes it possible, for fundamental rights to
be violated in El Salvador: impunity; the lack of punishment for
those who violate rights, both directly and indirectly, and who
have seen how they can act without opposition, much less
persecution and punishment. In a word, if no light is shed on the
atrocious deeds which caused so much pain and suffering to so many
people, if no reparations are made for the harm caused to the
victims, and if the latter are not allowed to decide whether or not
to pardon their tormentors, then a dangerous precedent will be set,
a clear message will be sent, and present and future violators will
be given a "green light" to continue their grisly work.
     To avoid such situations, it would be useful to recommend the
creation of one or more bodies whose job it would be to conclude
the work of moving toward solid peace and lasting reconciliation:
the road to truth, justice and -if the victims decide as much-
forgiveness. Mons. Arturo Rivera Damas, in his homily last December
20, took up the issue. "Jesus," he said, "gave his apostles the
power to forgive sins; but they saw that they could not exercise
that power arbitrarily, but rather in accordance with truth and
justice." As a pastor, Mons. Rivera feels that Salvadoran society
"needs reconciliation," and expressed that "the wounds cannot be
healed by ignoring them." According to the prelate, the wounds
"must be uncovered no matter how much it hurts. Then they must be
carefully cleaned in order to heal properly and never become
reinfected." 
 
Human rights in 1992
 
     It is still too risky to offer exact or approximate figures
regarding human rights violations committed in El Salvador during
1992. However, we can offer some basic elements in order to make a
qualitative judgment. In the first place, the number of violations
related to the armed conflict dropped considerably. This was no
doubt due to the international verification carried out, for better
or for worse, by the U.N. Observer Mission in El Salvador (ONUSAL),
as well as to the end of the armed conflict and the demobilization
of the FMLN, the reduction of the Armed Forces and the dismantling
of the "security forces." Nonetheless, we must try to draw a more
complete picture.
     In a study carried out by our Institute, we noted that between
August and November, the mass media continued to report countless
acts of violence. The local press alone registered a total of 274
violent deaths during that period, over 68 per month and two per
day, all within the framework of "peace." In August, there were 69,
in September 60, in October 79 and in November 66. The total breaks
down in the following manner: 116 (42.3%) were murders ascribed to
"common crime"; 75 (27.3%) to "unknown individuals"; and 53 (19.3%)
were bodies which appeared with clear signs of torture, in the
classic fashion of the "death squads." The rest (30) were victims
of grenade explosions, so-called "criminals" killed in "clashes"
with National Police, one person murdered by the 5th Infantry
Brigade, and another by a police agent. A doubt remains. Who can
guarantee that the victims of "common crime" or "unknown
individuals" were not killed for their political affiliation or
sympathies? These questions will persist as long as the State
agencies responsible for investigating the incidents and doing
justice fail to function.
     A report by the Public Defender's Office for Human Rights
about the prevailing situation, unfortunately unknown to the
public, also helps illustrate the current situation. The document,
despite its timid claims, contains a chart of "rights violated
according to denunciations" received between July 27 and November
30. Of a total of 595 cases reported, the Office offers the
following breakdown: 124 violations of due process, 115 attacks on
the right to life, 104 against personal freedoms, and 102 against
physical integrity. The other 150 human rights violations reported
by the Office are distributed throughout the following categories:
personal security, humanitarian treatment of detainees, freedom of
movement, freedom of association, administrative due process, and
others. The first four categories alone make up almost 75% of the
denunciations registered. In other words, in the midst of a process
of peace and reconciliation, violations of human dignity continue
to be focused on aspects which prevailed during the worst years of
repression and war.
 
..
 
Conclusion
 
     There will never be enough room to offer a detailed evaluation
of human rights in El Salvador during 1992. This is due not only to
the complex nature of events over the past twelve months, or to how
swiftly events unfolded in the context of a tight (although often
revised) peace schedule. Besides these two factors, which are
obviously a necessary part of any study, we must consider other
factors which define the cornerstone of the most important
decisions to be taken in the future.
     In the first place, we must locate ourselves in the moment
which unfolded at the beginning of the year: the suspension of the
armed conflict. This requires a different way of considering the
situation of human rights in El Salvador, based on three
fundamental perspectives. First, the overall quantitative reduction
of human rights violations starting with the end of the war, as
well as the anticipated drop in violations of international
humanitarian law. Second, the seriousness of the incidents which
continue to occur, especially attacks on human life, in the
framework of a process of peace and democratization. And finally,
a key aspect. The end of the armed conflict does not mean that the
causes which originated the war will automatically disappear; these
causes can be located in the historical and structural violation of
the economic, social and cultural rights of the majority of
Salvadorans, to which we must now add the disturbing deterioration
of the environment and the grave ecological imbalance.
     It is important to evaluate these aspects objectively in order
to avoid drawing simple and misleading conclusions which seek to
demonstrate improvement solely on the basis of overall figures
which do not take into account the virtually absolute disappearance
of attacks on human dignity in the war context, on the one hand,
and the continuing violations of the right to life, liberty and
personal integrity on the other. We hope to make a modest
contribution to this effort, by offering elements for debate such
as the ones in this evaluation: the need to review the past by
seeking truth and justice, in order to raise the stakes for present
and future human rights violators who, just as before, remain
cloaked in impunity. We also seek to offer critical support for the
proper functioning of the three organs which are vital for
guaranteeing the protection and promotion of human dignity in El
Salvador: the National Civilian Police, the Public Defender's
Office for Human Rights, and the judicial branch.
     Finally, the issue of economic, social and cultural rights,
together with a healthy and ecologically balanced environment,
appear to constitute the greatest challenge ahead for evaluating
human rights in El Salvador. The search for feasible solutions to
these tremendous problems cannot be abandoned, for that would only
prepare the way for repeating the tragedy of the past. As we
immerse ourselves in this new political reality, we will discover
that, in one way or another, with all their respective differences,
the two sides which signed the peace accords are not offering the
best alternatives at this time. So the enormous task facing all
sectors of Salvadoran society as we approach the 1994 elections is
to guarantee participation by all, starting by fully revindicating
our political rights, and elaborating global and specific proposals
for debate. The Salvadoran people deserves to be treated, by those
who would be its leaders, as a people who, after so much suffering,
has come of age politically.
 

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