“History will judge…”

General Ríos Montt (from AP).

Yesterday a court in Guatemala took the necessary steps to begin the trial against General Efraín Ríos Montt for crimes against humanity because of the killing of 1,771 Mayans during his tenure as head of state between 1982 and 1983, during the country’s 36-year long civil war (1960-1996).

Even before it formally begins (allegedly, some pre-trial hearings have already taken place), the announcement of the trial is historic: Gral. Ríos Montt will be the first former head of state in Latin America to face a civilian court in his own country for abuses during his government. The previous most similar case was that of Augusto Pinochet, who ruled Chile between 1973 and 1990. He also faced a tribunal under charges of gross human rights violations, but it was in Spain. Thus, Ríos’ trial represents an unparalleled opportunity for national judicial authorities to bring to justice the ultimate responsible government official for the abuses committed, the head of state. In addition, several press reports and statements issued by organizations such as Human Rights Watch point out the remarkable feature of Guatemala, a country usually identified with impunity and a chronically weak judiciary system, putting to trial one of its own war criminals for maybe the largest massacre in its national history.

On the other hand, the possibility that nothing comes out of the trial must be considered. Ríos Mont is in his mid eighties. It can occur that, as Pinochet, he dies at the middle of the process. Or that despite of the good intentions of the judges, the bureaucratic inertia of the judiciary system makes it impossible to carry out the trial in proper time. What is more, evidence might be collected inadequately and the whole case could be deemed unacceptable. Finally, there could be large dissatisfaction with the sentence dictated; what punishment for having ordered the killing of more than 1,700 people can be adequate for a man close to his nineties?

As a friend’s law professor said, justice that comes late is injustice. Almost thirty years have passed since the murders, and the prospects for conviction are anything but clear. However, the public claiming that Ríos Montt could be guilty and that it is to be decided on the courts might be a proxy to justice, although maybe only in the sense that efforts were made not to let him get his way.