US Congressman criticizes Bukele’s speech in El Mozote | News from El Salvador

Democrat Jim McGovern lamented that President Nayib Bukele attacked human rights defenders. Congressman Eliot Engel joined McGovern to show Bukele that the victims deserve more from the government.

The US Congressman, Jim McGovern, mentioned that “it is a pity that (President Nayib Bukele) used that nationally televised speech to attack the human rights defender (Apolonio Tobar) and (David Morales) the victims’ main lawyer in the judicial case of the massacre. (in El Mozote) (since 1981) ”.

The Democratic congressman’s opinion stems from the words of President Nayib Bukele in a speech he gave last Thursday at El Mozote, where in addition to saying that the Peace Accords are a “prank”, he also attacked the human rights lawyer, Apollonius Tobar; and Cristosal’s lawyer and El Mozote victims’ representative, David Morales, a former human rights lawyer.

“Just as recently they had an event with which Apollonius came, what is his name? David Morales, the former prosecutor, who benefits from the people, lives from the case, “President Nayib Bukele said on Thursday in The Mozote, to promise works in that place.

Congressman McGovern, in addition to stressing that the president arrived at El Mozote by helicopter, also reminded the Salvadoran president that he is awaiting a court order allowing Judge Jorge Guzmán access to military files.

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“If Nayib Bukele really wants to show that he is with the victims and with justice, he should give Judge Guzmán access to military cases, as required by a court decision. It would be a significant act “, the congressman posted on his Twitter account.

To these were added the opinion of Eliot Engel, a congressman who chairs the foreign affairs committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, who responded to McGovern, saying, “I agree, the victims of the El Mozote massacre deserve much more from their government.” the American official.

In his speech, the Salvadoran president repeatedly said that war and peace agreements are a “prank” and just a negotiation between two leaders.

“The war was a farce, they killed over 75,000 people between the two sides, including the 1,000 here at El Mozote, and it was a farce, like the Peace Accords,” stain the Peace Accords, “yes, I have them. stained because there was a farce, a negotiation between two leaders, or what benefits did the peace agreements bring to the Salvadorans? “President Bukele said in El Mozote.

Read more: Government insists on covering up El Mozote massacre and fails to comply with court ruling
Former human rights lawyer David Morales reacted to President Bukele’s statements and posted on his Twitter profile, saying that “Today (last Thursday), #ElMozote received false and hate speech. Loaded with demagogic promises. Again they were lied to about military files. Blood and suffering are priceless @nayibbukele; on the contrary, they always reveal cynicism and complicity “, said the lawyer on the social network.

In the El Mozote massacre, at least 1,000 people were killed in 1981 during a counterinsurgency operation in December of that year in the cantons of El Mozote, La Joya and Los Toriles in Morazán.

Until October last year, there were four occasions when the Armed Forces, with the support of President Nayib Bukele, denied conducting court proceedings in four of their military garrisons to give the case judge access to files in which he sought only to gather evidence to clarify the 1981 massacre in the armed conflict.

In the four attempts made by the San Francisco Gotera investigating judge, Jorge Guzmán, he gave explanations in order to be able to access the files and at the same time whenever the Armed Forces protected the fact that they keep “secret” documents in their premises to block inspections.

While the Constitutional Chamber ruled that the documents were not confidential, President Bukele justified the blockade by the fact that the judge in the case had no jurisdiction. He also supported the confidentiality of documents that are kept at the military headquarters and even said that the intention to enter the institutions is to review the strategic security plans.

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