Trial of ex-guerrillas accused of plotting attack on Bukele postponed again

The trial of 10 former guerrillas accused of terrorism for allegedly planning an attack on President Nayib Bukele during the inauguration of his second term in 2024 has been postponed for a second time in El Salvador. Activists and relatives called the delay a possible “dilatory tactic.”

At a news conference, they blamed the Judicial Branch and the prison system for the postponement. They said the judge had unexpectedly suspended the trial on Aug. 11, then rescheduled it for Sept. 7. The latest delay involved reported problems with the defendants’ virtual connection and medical appointments that some detainees were due to attend during the week.

Among the defendants is Atilio Montalvo, a former leader of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, or FMLN, which is now an opposition party. Montalvo signed El Salvador’s 1992 peace accords and attended the first hearing.

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Possible dilatory tactics.

“Social organizations demanding freedom for the veterans and former combatants denounce that the new suspension of the trial could respond to dilatory tactics aimed at postponing the criminal proceedings and prolonging the suffering of the detainees and their families,” the groups said. They asked authorities to bring the defendants to a courtroom if the judicial system and prison directorate cannot guarantee a virtual connection.

The FMLN and El Salvador’s government signed the peace accords in January 1992, ending a 12-year civil war that left about 75,000 people dead. In January 2024, veterans’ and former guerrilla organizations withdrew their support for Bukele ahead of the election, citing his alleged failure to honor a 2018 agreement on war veterans’ pensions.

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Social organizations demanding freedom for the veterans and former combatants denounce that the new suspension of the trial could respond to dilatory tactics aimed at postponing the criminal proceedings and prolonging the suffering of the detainees and their families.