40. Leopoldo discussed the Captain’s final statement to the Court that morning while he was dressed in his military uniform.  He felt that in dressing this way, the Captain was sending a clear message to the Prosecution lawyers that a threat made against him is a threat made against the entire Guatemalan military.  Zeissig also noted that the Captain’s remarks had been very personal and that he had at one point said that he had lost his daughter because of “you”, referring specifically to Zeissig.

41. He said that they want to establish a line of communication with Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada and they want to know that they have someone to call if they need to do so. While they said that they intended to remain in their posts and in Guatemala, they both stated that they have families to protect and that they had considered fleeing Guatemala, albeit as a last resort.

42. They said that their position was very tentative and that they had to remain very sharp and vigilant against the continuing and increasing threats that had been made.  He also said that he was very appreciative of the support that they had received from the international community.  He noted that in the past that they had felt very alone especially when taking any military accused to trial and that very few people were willing to help. He concluded by thanking us for our interest. 

43. The Fiscales had some comments with regard to the Guatemalan justice system in general.  Zeissig said that in Guatemala lawyers are adapting slowly to the new adversarial system, promulgated in 1994. He noted that it would be of great interest to lawyers in Guatemala to receive some kind of ongoing training with regard to the adversarial system.

June 7, 2001 3:00pm, Colegio de Abogados y Notarios de Guatemala (the Guatemalan Bar Association) , Presidente Mario Renè Chàvez Garcia

44. Again I gave a brief overview of the LRWC and IDC.

45. Chavez indicated that membership in the Colegio is mandatory in order for lawyers to practice in Guatemala. The goal of the Colegio is to provide legal education and to monitor the ethics of the profession. The Colegio organizes seminars and certification processes for certain areas of the law.  He indicated that many of the seminars are directed at ensuring that Guatemalan lawyers are following the professional code of ethics.

46. Chavez also noted that the Colegio does have a disciplinary function and that there was a body which he described as a “court of honour” which is responsible for professional sanctions. 

47. Chavez also indicated that the Colegio was involved in a number of initiatives which centred on the speedy and accessible delivery of justice for all citizens in Guatemala.  He noted the great challenge that Guatemala faced with regard to the legitimacy of the judicial system and again referred to the public lynchings which had occurred in the past. 

48. He also said that during the civil war and in particular the period in Guatemalan history between 1975 and 1985, over 50 lawyers had been killed as a direct result of political repression conducted by the State. However with regard to the seven most recent assassinations, the common denominator seemed to be organised crime. The Colegio has been monitoring the progress of the investigations and Chavez indicated that he has spoken with the Director of Police and also with MINUGUA as well as with the investigators at the Ministerio Publico.  He said that the Director of Police had told him that based upon what he knew of the assassinations that it would likely never be known who the killers were. He also noted that the new public office which was specifically targeted at violence against people working in the legal system had not made much progress. 

49. Chavez noted that in terms of supporting human rights for lawyers that the Colegio had been a driving force behind the creation of the government-run human rights office, the Constitutional Court, and the Supreme Electoral Court and that the College had been a driving force in pushing for the constitutionalization of these institutions.

50. Chavez also indicated that the Colegio had been backing the most recent referendum effort which would have seen a number of reforms to the judiciary. Chavez noted that in terms of protecting the ability for lawyers to practice freely that more often than not, as opposed to lobbying the Government it had meant that associations like the Colegio had to position themselves against the Government.  In the past, part of their efforts had involved looking for solidarity from organisations like the American Bar Association and the Inter-American Association of Lawyers.  To his knowledge, there has not been any ongoing relationship with Canada. 

51. Chavez recalled a time when he had been the President of the Journalists Association in Guatemala.  He remembered that a representative of the Canadian Embassy had established a  phone line which had effectively allowed at least twelve (12) journalists to flee the country when it was likely that they otherwise would have been killed as a result of articles and editorials that they had written.  Chavez expressed that he had a deep respect for the Canadian role in Guatemala during the war. 

52. Chavez said that the Colegio would be very interested in learning more about such institutions as the British Columbia Law Court’s Education Society as the development of public respect for the law in Guatemala is a priority. He indicated that there was a subcommittee of the College which was designated to work on public education. 

June 7, 2001 5:00pm, Oficina de Derechos Humanos del Arzobispado de Guatemala (ODHAG) at the Hotel Camino Real

53. I had an opportunity to have a formal meeting with the three prosecuting lawyers from ODHAG, but I had already been spending quite a bit of time with staff from ODHAG, in particular Mike Flynn who had been acting as my translator and Marta Julia who had been arranging my schedule. Without ODHAG’s help my trip would have been much less productive. On June 7, 2001 I had been hanging out with the ODHAG lawyers between my meetings, although we had some time for a more formal meeting later in the afternoon.