Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08GUATEMALA1333
2008-10-27 22:54:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Guatemala
Cable title:  

HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER'S FAMILY MEMBER KIDNAPPED,

Tags:  PHUM KCRM KTIP KWMN SMIG PGOV GT 
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VZCZCXYZ0001
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHGT #1333 3012254
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 272254Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY GUATEMALA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6319
C O N F I D E N T I A L GUATEMALA 001333 

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/26/2018
TAGS: PHUM KCRM KTIP KWMN SMIG PGOV GT
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER'S FAMILY MEMBER KIDNAPPED,
RELEASED

Classified By: Ambassador McFarland for reasons 1.4(b,d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L GUATEMALA 001333

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/26/2018
TAGS: PHUM KCRM KTIP KWMN SMIG PGOV GT
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER'S FAMILY MEMBER KIDNAPPED,
RELEASED

Classified By: Ambassador McFarland for reasons 1.4(b,d)


1. (C) On October 19, at approximately noon, the son-in-law
of human rights defender Norma Cruz, Director of NGO
"Fundacion Sobrevivientes" (Survivors Foundation),was
assaulted and kidnapped while walking home from a soccer game
in Guatemala City. He was reportedly forced inside a vehicle
where three men, two masked and one armed, threatened to kill
him. He was beaten and later released a block from Cruz'
home. According to the Human Rights Defenders Protection
Unit (UPDDDH),neighbors reported seeing individuals in
suspicious vehicles surveying Cruz' home between October 13
and 18.


2. (C) Three days later, on October 22, soon after filing a
complaint with the Special Prosecutor's Office for Human
Rights at the Public Ministry and the Office of the Human
Rights Ombudsman, Cruz received three phone calls from an
unidentified person who threatened to kill her. Later that
same day, a suspicious-looking car was seen parked in front
of the offices of the Survivors Foundation.


3. (C) UPDDDH believes that the incident may be linked to
Cruz' recent work on cases that implicate state security
agents in a trafficking in persons (TIP) network. It noted
that the characteristics of this incident, particularly the
"express" kidnapping and the type of persons and vehicle
allegedly involved, correspond to descriptions of suspected
state agents provided by victims in cases documented by the
Foundation.


4. (C) Norma Cruz told poloff on October 24 that she believed
that the men who assaulted and kidnapped her son-in-law were
"parallel security forces" working within the government, but
not members of the National Civil Police (PNC). She said she
reported the incident to the Public Ministry but had not
contacted the International Commission Against Impunity in
Guatemala (CICIG). Poloff encouraged her to contact CICIG
and provided contact information. The Human Rights Unit of
the PNC Criminal Investigations Division (DINC) is assisting
with the investigation, and the Presidential Commission on
Human Rights (COPREDEH) has been informed of the incident.



5. (U) The Survivors Foundation is a not-for-profit,
apolitical social service agency that provides emotional,
social, and legal support to female victims of domestic and
sexual violence, trafficking in persons, and illegal
adoptions. Over the past two years, it has been involved in
the investigation and prosecution of several high-profile
cases, including the June 2007 disappearance and killing of
9-year-old Alba Mishel Espana in Camotan, Chiquimula, the
June 2007 case of minor Jonatan Martinez Sol, who was
kidnapped and later rescued during a raid conducted by the
Public Ministry, and complaints filed by TIP victims
implicating state agents.


6. (U) Comment: This latest act of intimidation and death
threat against a family member of a human rights defender
underscores the extent of impunity and violence in Guatemala,
and the need for increased protection for human rights
defenders and their family members.
McFarland