Louisa Reynolds provides some background on last week's apparent assassination of Guatemalan lawyer Francisco Palomo Tejada with 26 lawyers have been murdered in Guatemala in the past 3 years. Palomo was one of Efrain Rios Montt's lawyers for the recent genocide trial, but he has also been connected to a number of other high profile cases in recent years.
Preliminary police reports state that Palomo’s murder was a hit, although the motives are still unclear. The fact that the murder occurred in the aftermath of a massive customs fraud scandal that has led to six consecutive weeks of nationwide demonstrations against the Pérez Molina administration has led to speculation that the killing could exacerbate the current climate of political instability.
“This could have a deep impact on the middle-class protesters who have taken to the streets in recent weeks. People might see this as the beginning of a wave of selective repression and it could inhibit protest,” says Edgar Gutiérrez, director of the Institute for Addressing National Problems at the University of San Carlos.
It is also unclear whether Palomo’s murder could have an impact on Ríos Montt’s retrial, which was scheduled for Jan. 5 but suspended after his defense team accused the presiding judge of bias. Although a new judge was appointed, no date has been set for the retrial.
“Palomo specialized in technical procedures. What his [Ríos Montt’s] defense lawyers did was obstruct the case rather than defend him. It’s a very complicated case that’s moving at a snail’s pace. I’m not sure what impact it [Palomo’s murder] could have,” Gutiérrez said.
As of late last week, authorities were investigating three possible lines of investigation into Palomo's murder. The principal hypothesis is that we was killed because of a case that he was working on. However, the case is believed to be relatively low-profile. The murder comes during a brief uptick in the country's overall homicide rates as well as reasonable and questionable protests.
There's a good chance that authorities will find those responsible for the shooting death of Palomo. As I've said before, the MP's office has gotten pretty good at solving high-profile murders through the use of ballistics and video. Not perfect, but better.
Preliminary police reports state that Palomo’s murder was a hit, although the motives are still unclear. The fact that the murder occurred in the aftermath of a massive customs fraud scandal that has led to six consecutive weeks of nationwide demonstrations against the Pérez Molina administration has led to speculation that the killing could exacerbate the current climate of political instability.
“This could have a deep impact on the middle-class protesters who have taken to the streets in recent weeks. People might see this as the beginning of a wave of selective repression and it could inhibit protest,” says Edgar Gutiérrez, director of the Institute for Addressing National Problems at the University of San Carlos.
It is also unclear whether Palomo’s murder could have an impact on Ríos Montt’s retrial, which was scheduled for Jan. 5 but suspended after his defense team accused the presiding judge of bias. Although a new judge was appointed, no date has been set for the retrial.
“Palomo specialized in technical procedures. What his [Ríos Montt’s] defense lawyers did was obstruct the case rather than defend him. It’s a very complicated case that’s moving at a snail’s pace. I’m not sure what impact it [Palomo’s murder] could have,” Gutiérrez said.
As of late last week, authorities were investigating three possible lines of investigation into Palomo's murder. The principal hypothesis is that we was killed because of a case that he was working on. However, the case is believed to be relatively low-profile. The murder comes during a brief uptick in the country's overall homicide rates as well as reasonable and questionable protests.
There's a good chance that authorities will find those responsible for the shooting death of Palomo. As I've said before, the MP's office has gotten pretty good at solving high-profile murders through the use of ballistics and video. Not perfect, but better.
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