Judge orders to inspect military files in search of evidence of the El Mozote massacre

11 bodies recovered from the 1981 El Mozote massacre 2:46

(CNN Spanish) - A court in El Salvador ordered this Friday that between September 21 and November 13, inspections should be carried out in the archives of different military bases in that country.

The purpose of the analysis of the files, according to the court, is to find evidence that will help clarify the El Mozote massacre, which occurred in December 1981 in a village located about 200 kilometers from San Salvador.

The massacre took place during a military operation in the middle of the civil war, according to the report of the Truth Commission, prepared with the support of the United Nations. In the so-called “scorched earth” operation, about 1,000 people, mostly children, were killed, according to the report by the Center for Justice and International Law.

The diligence, in charge of experts who have already been sworn in by the court, will be headed by Jorge Guzmán Urquilla, investigating judge of San Francisco Gotera. In the case, a group of soldiers who made up the High Command of the Salvadoran Army in 1981 is on trial. The accused have pleaded not guilty during the criminal proceedings.

During the hearing that took place this Friday in the San Francisco Gotera court, 166 kilometers from San Salvador, the attorney for the accused, Lisandro Quintanilla, requested the "nullity of the process" because "military plans are reserved regardless of the temporality and because that was established by the law in force in 1981 ”.

However, the judge declared the petition inadmissible, which he described as a "delaying tactic" on the part of the defense and explained that the diligence seeks to find the truth about this massacre. "There are people who have been waiting for justice for 39 years," Judge Guzmán said.

For his part, the attorney representing the government, José Pérez Chacón, explained that there is interest in knowing the truth but expressed his concern as the inspection could reveal military plans that must be secret.

"We must establish an information limit that compromises national security, the State and sovereignty," said Pérez Chacón.

The judge explained that the diligence will be carried out and that the necessary measures have been taken so that only the process of the El Mozote massacre is analyzed. "I do not see any impact on the knowledge of plans that were executed 40 years ago," Judge Guzmán assured during the hearing.

President Nayib Bukele offered access to the archives. "We are for the truth to be known in its entire spectrum: from A to Z. Moreover, if the judge asks us from A to F, we will do it to Z," said Bukele during a conference of press in November 2019.

According to the court's planning, after the inspections, the expert team will have one month to deliver the report.

The court also issued a precautionary measure that prevents those in charge of custody of military files from moving, hiding or stealing information. The objective is to ensure the information that these military files may contain, as stated by Cristosal, a non-governmental organization that promotes respect for human rights and that is part of the criminal process as a private accuser.

"Is positive. We hope that the collaboration is not formal, that it is not simply a statement here at the hearing, but that the entire collaboration protocol is given in the inspection, ”said David Morales, in charge of Cristosal's legal litigation.

The criminal process against the soldiers who made up the Army High Command in 1981 was opened after the Supreme Court of Justice of El Salvador declared unconstitutional, in 2016, several articles of the General Amnesty Law that had been approved in 1993.

El Mozote