Guatemala Human Rights Commission/USA

April 26, 2007

WE REMEMBER GERARDI!

Today we celebrate the ninth anniversary of the assassination of Bishop Juan Gerardi, Guatemala’s martyr for peace, who was brutally murdered in his home forty-eight hours after having unveiled the Recovery of Historical Memory (REHMI) Report in 1998.

Monsignor Gerardi was the driving force behind the REHMI Report, which documented the human rights violations committed during Guatemala’s thirty-six year civil war. The Report concluded that the government security forces were responsible for 93% of the violations committed. It documented the violations and allowed victims to finally speak up and share the horrors of the war.

Bishop Gerardi understood the source of the violence that befell his Guatemalan sisters and brothers and he fought so the perpetrators of atrocities would be held accountable here on earth. Nine years after his death, three men are in prison for his murder, but those responsible for the genocide and crimes against humanity cited in the REHMI report have yet to be held accountable. The work of Gerardi continues to give hope to millions of Guatemalans affected by the war and who long for justice and an end to impunity.

We ask that you pause for a second today and reflect on Gerardi’s pursuit of peace and justice. As Bishop Gerardi put it, “Peace is possible – a peace that is born from the truth that comes from each one of us and from all of us.” May we all be proponents of peace! Thank you for remembering Monsignor Gerardi!

Peace is possible,

The Guatemala Human Rights Commission / USA

 

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