Paraguay apologizes for journalist's 1991 murder after rights court ruling

The Paraguayan state has officially recognized its international responsibility and offered apologies for the 1991 assassination of journalist Santiago Leguizamón Zaván. This public act of contrition fulfills a ruling by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR), which in November 2022 declared the state responsible for the crime and condemned the decades of impunity surrounding it.

The ceremony, held at the Palace of Justice, brought together Leguizamón's family, judicial officials, and media representatives. Speakers highlighted that the IACHR ruling transcends the pursuit of justice for one family, emphasizing the importance of honoring Leguizamón's life and work, as well as that of other murdered journalists, by fully complying with the international judgment.

Dante Leguizamón, representing the family, expressed satisfaction with the state's acknowledgment after a long and painful journey toward justice. "The impact of his assassination must be transformed into public policies against impunity in the murders of journalists. It must become public policies for protection against violence toward journalists and become public policies for the protection of journalists," he urged.

Alberto Martínez, president of Paraguay's Supreme Court of Justice, delivered the state's apology, framing the act as an exercise in memory and respect. "Memory of a journalist who made the search for truth a life's vocation. Respect for his family, who for more than three decades have lived with the pain of an irreparable loss, with insufficient responses from institutions called to protect their rights," Martínez stated. He underscored that Leguizamón's murder was an attack on fundamental democratic values: freedom of the press, access to information, and free public debate.

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El impacto que tuvo su asesinato debe convertirse en políticas públicas contra la impunidad en los asesinatos de periodistas. Debe convertirse en políticas públicas de protección a la violencia contra periodistas y convertirse en políticas públicas de protección a periodistas.