Impunity and the July 13, 1994 Massacre

John Suarez

impunity noun: freedom from punishment for something that has been done that is wrong or illegal. Ex: After seven years the men responsible for the murder of 41 men, women, and children continue to live their lives with complete impunity.

Seven years ago this July 13 in the early morning hours forty one Cuban men, women, and children were massacred by agents of the Cuban government. Their names were Leonardo Notario Góngora (27), Marta Tacoronte Vega (36), Caridad Leyva Tacoronte (36), Yausel Eugenio Pérez Tacoronte (11), Mayulis Méndez Tacoronte (17), Odalys Muñoz García (21), Pilar Almanza Romero (30), Yaser Perodín Almanza (11), Manuel Sánchez Callol (58), Juliana Enriquez Carrasana (23), Helen Martínez Enríquez (6 months), Reynaldo Marrero (45), Joel García Suárez (24), Juan Mario Gutiérrez García (10), Ernesto Alfonso Joureiro (25), Amado Gonzáles Raices (50), Lázaro Borges Priel (34), Liset Alvarez Guerra (24), Yisel Borges Alvarez (4), Guillermo Cruz Martínez (46), Fidelio Ramel Prieto-Hernández (51), Rosa María Alcalde Preig (47), Yaltamira Anaya Carrasco (22), José Carlos Nicole Anaya (3), María Carrasco Anaya (44), Julia Caridad Ruiz Blanco (35), Angel René Abreu Ruiz (3), Jorge Arquímides Lebrijio Flores (28), Eduardo Suárez Esquivel (39), Elicer Suárez Plascencia, Omar Rodríguez Suárez (33), Miralis Fernández Rodríguez (28), Cindy Rodríguez Fernández (2), José Gregorio Balmaceda Castillo (24), Rigoberto Feut Gonzáles (31), Midalis Sanabria Cabrera (19), and four others who could not be identified. This atrocity was sanctioned by the Cuban government, and the men responsible were decorated and given promotions. In this case as in so many others the Cuban government has acted with complete impunity. Their actions are the dictionary definition of impunity.

The Cuban dictatorship is marching out of step with the rest of the civilized world. Dictators and democrats along with their henchmen all along the ideological spectrum have to take notice:

·           Serbian tyrant Slobodan Milosevic stands trial before an international tribunal in The Hague for war crimes sent there by his fellow countrymen. ·            Former Argentine President Carlos Menem has been indicted for allegedly heading an illicit organization that illegally sold rifles and artillery to Croatia in 1991 and Ecuador in 1995. ·  Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet was held under house arrest in Great Britain, and still faces prosecution back in Chile for his responsibility in the murder of Chilean citizens during his dictatorship. ·            In Mexico, 102 men were detained in connection with the 1997 Chiapas massacre in which 45 people were killed. Of the 102 Mexicans officials and citizens detained, 37 have been sentenced to terms of imprisonment and 65, as of the year 2000, are still subject to criminal proceedings. ·            Gerardo Hernandez, one of the Cuban spies responsible for the February 24, 1996 murders of Armando Alejandre Jr., Carlos Costa, Mario de la Peña, and Pablo Morales , was found guilty in a US Federal Court of conspiracy to commit murder. Throughout the entire world freedom from punishment otherwise known as impunity is coming under fire.

These are all positive developments on behalf of the rule of law and steps towards more democratic societies. Unfortunately, state sanctioned murders still go unpunished and on the world stage largely ignored. We are approaching the seventh anniversary of a massacre that took place on July 13, 1994 off the Cuban coastline. 41 men, women, and children drowned by agents of the Cuban government.

In October 1996 the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States declared "the Cuban State is responsible for violating the right to life (Article 1 of the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man) of the 41 people who were shipwrecked and perished as a result of the sinking of the tug "13 de Marzo", which events occurred seven miles off the Cuban coast on July 13, 1994

In 1996, in the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions report to the 52nd Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights stated that he had transmitted allegations concerning the "13 de Marzo" massacre to the Cuban Government in expressing deep concern that he had not received a reply. The UN Special Rapporteur on Cuba, in his report to the UN General Assembly also expressed serious concern "about the fact that an event of this magnitude, in which 37 people died, has not been investigated."

In December 1994, a woman who lost her daughter, her brother and two other relatives in the July 13, 1994 tugboat massacre made the following appeal: "This crime cannot remain unpunished. We who suffered their physical disappearance can only cry and be silent. We keep a vigil by their photos with Rapid Response standing by. We have been warned not to put at risk the safety of those who survived. Everything is clear, we have to keep quiet. But you who are free to shout to the world that incidents like this should not be repeated must not forget this massacre... We only ask for the remains of our loved ones and that justice is done for this horrendous crime."

Some have argued that holding dictators accountable would discourage them from giving up power, but on the other hand holding them accountable would discourage tyrants from engaging in greater abuses. The dictator in Cuba has been turned into a pop icon visited by celebrities and politicians from around the world. He has never been held accountable for his crimes, and his henchmen until the spy trial had never paid a price for their crimes.

When heads of state or their henchmen realize that their decisions, if violating fundamental human rights and freedoms, would open them up to years in prison they'll think twice before sanctioning a massacre or taking part in one. That is why seven years after a massacre of 41 men, women, and children justice still cries out from the families of the victims and from a watery grave nearly seven miles away from Havana's harbor.

Visit http://www.fiu.edu/~fcf/justicenow for more information on the massacre.

Top ^