IACHR Releases Resolution on Human Rights and the Fight Against Impunity and Corruption (September 12, 2017) [1]
On September 12, 2017, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) passed a resolution [3] on “Human Rights and the Fight Against Impunity and Corruption.” The press release [4] notes that the IACHR decided to issue the resolution to highlight the fight against impunity and corruption and their links to human rights, as well Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales’s expulsion of Iván Velásquez, the head of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (ICIG), from the state. The IACHR states in the resolution that “the establishment of effective mechanisms to eradicate corruption is an urgent obligation in order to achieve effective access to an independent and impartial justice and to guarantee human rights.” They also observe that the decision to expel Velásquez took place shortly after another case of corruption was initiated against senior officials, including the President, and highlighted their concern regarding information they received concerning threats and attacks on judges, prosecutors, journalists, and human rights defenders working on matters of corruption in Guatemala. The IACHR called “on the independent branches of government to act to guarantee the rule of law” and “urge[d] the State of Guatemala to also take the measures necessary to exercise its oversight duties with independence, autonomy, and due process guarantees with regard to investigations and ongoing processes.”