Statement from the Sumpul Association – 40th anniversary

The Sumpul Association released a statement a couple of days ago regarding the upcoming 40th anniversary of the Sumpul River massacre.

You can read it in full here (in Spanish)

 

40 years of impunity have passed and justice has been denied to victims and survivors of the Sumpul River Massacre. We aspire to a reconciled society, where victims can forgive without the weight of institutionalized impunity, but there can only be forgiveness and reconciliation if truth and justice are guaranteed. For this, it is necessary a national reconciliation law, that above all guarantees truth, justice and reparation. We reject the new law, since it seeks to favor the victimizers with an amnesty in disguise, leaving crimes against humanity in impunity. Therefore, we demand:

 

ACCESS TO JUSTICE

1- That the Magistrate’s Court in Ojos de Agua Chalatenango, the First Instance Court of Chalatenango, the Attorney General of the Republic, the Supreme Court of Justice and the President of the Republic in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces take the case of the Sumpul Massacre with due responsibility and fulfill the role that corresponds to each one promptly and efficiently.

2- We demand the authorities to resume expeditiously and, once it is possible after the COVID 19 crisis, to take measures that should have been taken since the complaint was filed in 1992, such as:

a. To begin with the exhumation process at the massacre site.

b. Carry out the corresponding procedures with the Honduran authorities to exhume remains that were buried in Honduran territory on the banks of the Sumpul River.

c. Take the intellectual authors of the Sumpul Massacre to the stand. Their names are included in the complaint filed by the Legal Office of the archbishopric of San Salvador before the First Instance Court of Chalatenango and in the Truth Commission report.

 

TRUTH AND MORAL REPARATION

3- That the government recognize the veracity of the facts as they have been documented and ask for forgiveness, without revictimizing the Sumpul Massacre survivors.

4- To pay tribute to all the victims of the armed conflict, declaring a National Day for the Innocent and Defenseless Victims of the Civilian Population Caused by the Armed Conflict and to develop commemoration and education programs that include the creation of monuments, Murals and Memory Routes in the cities and municipalities that were most affected by the war.

 

MATERIAL REPARATION

1- A decent pension for all civilian survivors of the war.

2- That there be on-going mental health programs for survivors and their families.

3- Projects to support housing, health and higher education for survivors and their families.

4- The creation of dignified and pleasant physical spaces that provide survivors with the basic conditions to end their days in this world.

 

 

San Salvador, May 10th, 2020

 

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