The genocide trial of General Efrain Rios Montt is only the beginning of justice. Rios Montt was only one player in the slaughter of a quarter million Guatemalans. All of the other officials involved should also face criminal charges.
One of them, General Otto Perez Molina, Guatemala's current president, was commander in the field during the massacres for which Rios Montt has been indicted.
Another, Ronald Reagan, the prime foreign sponsor of the Rios Montt killings, is of course deceased but many of his top aides are still available.
Bringing Presidents -- and Americans -- to justice may seem like a political pipe dream but that's what they said to the Mayan survivors who first thought of trying Rios Montt.
It took thirty years and much effort and blood but today he faces Guatemalan justice. How long will it take Americans to reach a comparable level of civilization -- one which would finally enable the US to enforce the law against its own officials?
Allan Nairn
NOTE TO READERS: News and Comment is looking for assistance with translating blog postings into other languages, and also with fund raising and distributing the blog content more widely. Those interested please get in touch via the e-mail link below.
NOTE TO READERS RE. TRANSLATION: Portions of News and Comment are now available in Arabic, Brazilian Portuguese, Danish, French, German, Russian and Spanish translation (click preceding links or Profile link above) but translation help is still needed -- particularly with older postings, in these and all other languages.
NOTE TO READERS RE. POTENTIAL EVIDENCE: News and Comment is looking for public and private documents and first-hand information that could develop into evidence regarding war crimes or crimes against humanity by officials. Please forward material via the email link below.
Email Me
