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International Statement Regarding the Assassination of Hector Antonio Ventura, Ex-Political Prisoner in the Suchitoto 13 case, and Political Killings in El Salvador: May 2008

We join the Association for Development of El Salvador, CRIPDES, the Foundation for the Application and Study of Law, FESPAD, and the more than forty member organizations of the Coalition for Peace, Dignity and Social Justice in denouncing the assassination of Hector Antonio Ventura, committed on May 2 nd, 2008 in the community of Valle Verde, in the Municipality of Suchitoto, Department of Cuscatlán, El Salvador. According to preliminary information, Ventura was stabbed to death in the heart and received blows to the head, from assailants who entered the house where Ventura was staying with a friend. The second young man was attacked but survived.

Ventura was one of 14 people who were prosecuted by the Salvadoran government for the charge of Acts of Terrorism, after participating in a peaceful protest against water privatisation in Suchitoto on July 2 nd 2007. Their case was marked by tremendous national and international outcry against the grave misuse of anti-terror statutes against legitimate political expression.

Ventura ’s murder was committed just weeks after all 14 of the prosecuted were granted definitive liberty. The court decision proved false the accusations that the Government and the Attorney General of the Republic had made against the group of activists throughout the ten months prior. The murder was also committed just two days after Ventura had agreed to give testimony of his experience at a public “Day Against Impunity” event planned for July 2, 2008 by the Mayor of Suchitoto. Although we still await a full investigation of the crime – one that investigates not only the assailants but also the intellectual authors of the crime - these circumstances, including the fact that Ventura was a young social activist, and particularly the fact that he was a recently released political prisoner, create grave concerns that his assassination was committed for political reasons, with the intention of destabilizing and intimidating members of the political opposition.

As members of the international community concerned with human rights in El Salvador, we join the Salvadoran social organizations in denouncing this atrocity, and express our profound anxiety regarding several other murders of social activists and opposition political leaders in the last two years.

The Salvadoran Archbishop’s Legal Defence Office investigated 26 homicides in 2006 that suggested the participation of the death squads reminiscent of the Salvadoran civil war. The Office also noted five illustrative cases of murders of social activists and opposition political leaders in 2006. The cases include:

• Eligio Ramirez, local FMLN leader(Cuscatancingo, March 2006)
• Francisco Manzanares and Juana de Manzanares, (Suchitoto, July, 2006)
• Alex Wilberto Flores and Lidia Peñate de Flores, members of the FMLN party (Coatepeque, August, 2006)

In the 2007 report of the Archbishop’s Legal Defense Office, 113 of 169 investigated violent deaths were extrajudicial executions: executions committed by organized crime structures reminiscent of Civil War-era death squads, met with tolerance or participation by the state, and committed with the intent of generating terror in the population, social cleansing, or elimination of political opposition members.

The Foundation for Application and Study of Law, FESPAD, has documented the following murders of political leaders and social activists in 2007 and 2008:

• Gerson Roberto Alvallero, employee of FUNPROCOOP (Foundation in Promotion of Cooperatives) and FMLN supporter (Santa Ana, January 2007)
• Oscar Alejandro Franco, youth member of the FMLN (Cuscatancingo, May 2007)
• Miguel Angel Vasquez, Union leader (San Salvador, July, 2007)
• Salvador Sanchez, investigative journalist who reported extensively on the case of the Suchitoto 14 (Soyapango, September, 2007).
• Wilber Moises Funes and Zulma Rivera, FMLN leaders (January 2008)
• Omar Huezo, member of the National Civic Police and security guard for an FMLN Legislative Assembly member (San La Libertad, April 2008)
• Alejandro Portillo. Member of community leadership (Suchitoto, April 2008)
• William Landaverde, son of FMLN supporters (Suchitoto, May 2008)

Before the international community, we join Salvadoran social organizations in denouncing these murders and calling upon:

1. The Attorney General of the Republic of El Salvador and the General Director of the National Civilian Police to begin extensive investigations of these cases , investigations which address the political characteristics of the assassinations and hich consider not only the assailants but also the intellectual authors of the crimes .

2. The Ombudsperson of Human Rights to begin immediate actions in order to protect the lives of the witnesses in the case of all investigations. We also ask that the Ombudsperson verify the investigation of these crimes, to ensure that there is due process and no results are omitted.

We call upon our own, international governments to:

1. Urge the Salvadoran authorities responsible to thoroughly investigate these cases and follow the results of the investigations until their conclusion.

2. Urge the office of the Salvadoran Ombudsperson for Human Rights to ensure provision of protection and safety for witnesses in these trials, as well as to opposition members who receive politically motivated threats to their lives or wellbeing.

SIGNED,

Contact Claudia Rodriguez Alas at Claudia@share-elsalvador.org to sign on to this statement as a community or individual!!