CREDHOS came to the house to warn us: agents from the Technical Investigation Corps (CTI) had arrived at the office with an arrest warrant and taken David into custody. It was the afternoon of 14th September 2010. Continue reading “The branch of truth bends but never breaks”
Category Archives: Tales from the field
A surreal hearing
I had never imagined that a public trial could be held in such a small place. 13 people – including the judge, the prosecutor, the lawyers, the police and the accused, David Ravelo – in a space of less than 12 metres square. Continue reading A surreal hearing
Justice… delayed
A couple of weeks ago I was all set to attend my second criminal hearing in Colombia, though this time accompanying the defense lawyer, not a lawyer on the prosecution side (representing the victims is a role permitted in the Colombian justice system), as I did in 2010 in the San Jose de Apartado massacre case. Now, two is more attempts later, I’m seeing first hand some of the frustrations that many human rights lawyers have expressed about the Colombian judicial system. Continue reading Justice… delayed