Guatemala snubs human rights court, orders release of prisoners convicted of crimes against humanity
By SONIA PÉREZ D.
Associates Press
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — A Guatemalan appeals court has disobeyed a ruling from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights by ordering the release of three former high-ranking military officers convicted of crimes against humanity. In March, the regional human rights court halted the release of the prisoners “to prevent irreparable damage to the right of access to justice for the victims.” It’s not the first time that Guatemala authorities have disregarded rulings by the court – they’ve been condemned for it 14 times before. The original 2018 sentencing of the men actually came about as a result of a 2004 condemnation by the rights court, which rebuked decades of impunity in a case.