28 October 2009 | Interviews | Human rights
Death Metaphor
Carmela Curul, member of the Association of Mayan Lawyers, discussed the murder of her colleague, Fausto Otzin
1:16 minutes
Download: MP3 (892.2 kb)
While working on several cases of abuses against Mayan communities who were victims of megaprojects, Guatemalan lawyer, Fausto Otzin, was murdered on October 18th. And this is not an isolated case. Cruelty acquired brutal metaphoric forms: his jaw was destroyed and his brain crushed. The implicit message is that Fausto paid with his life for thinking and raising his voice for his brothers and sisters using Law as a means.
Lawyer Carmela Curul, who, as Fausto, is member of the Association of Mayan Lawyers of Guatemala, talked about the career of her colleague as consultant on indigenous rights and researcher.
“He was working as a consultant for the Program for Access to Justice of the European Union, including basic rights such as access to land and sovereignty of Mayan native peoples.
“Five lawyers of our organization have been threatened with death”, said Carmela in an interview by Victorino Tejasuc for Real World Radio.
