Abstract
Through the lens of Guatemala’s Jorge Carpio Nicolle case I analyze the mechanisms that preserve impunity in Latin American nations struggling to emerge from violent conflict and embrace, the rule of law. I reveal how the infective influence of parallel powers, the ineffectiveness of the judicial process, and obstructive legal doctrine destroy domestic efforts to prosecute those responsible for human rights violations. The Carpio case exposes the role of international courts in providing justice when domestic courts fail to do so, and it demonstrates the importance of human rights groups in pursuing this justice.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Altholz, Roxanna. 2004. Interview with the Author. Washington, D.C. 11 May.
Amnesty International. 1994. “Kenya: Abusive Use of the Law,” New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 1995a. “Colombia,” In Amnesty International Report 1995, New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 1995b. “Zairian Human Rights Activists under Threat,” New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 1995c. “Armenia: Allegations of ill-treatment,” New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 1996. “El Salvador The Specter of Death Squads,” New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 2003. “Serbia and Montenegro Alleged Torture, During ‘Operation Saber’,” New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 2004. “Albania,” In Amnesty International Report 2004. New York: Amnesty International.
Amnesty International. 2004. Annual Report—Colombia.New York: Amnesty International.
Arrivillaga de Carpio, Martha. 2004. Testimony, before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Transcribed by the Author. San Jose, Costa Rica, July 5.
Beltran, Adriana. 2004. Interview with the Author, Washington, D.C. (4 June 2004).
Call, Charles T. 2003. “Democratisation, War and State-Building: Constructing the Rule of Law in El Salvador.” Journal of Latin American Studies. 35(4), 827–863.
Carpio v. Guatemala, 2004. Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Ser. C. No. 117.
Dodson, J. Michael and Donald W. Jackson. 2001. “Judicial Independence in Central America,” in Judicial Independence in the Age of Democracy, eds. Peter H. Russell and David M. O'Brien. Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press.
Galindo, Pedro. 2003. “Indicadores Subjetivos: Estudios, Calificaciones de Riesgo y Encuestas de Percepción Pública sobre los Sistemas de Justicia.” Report of the Justice Studies Center of the Americas.
Handy, Jim. 2004. “Chicken Thieves, Witches, and Judges: Vigilante Justice and Customary Law in Guatemala.” Journal of Latin American Studies 36(3), 533–562.
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. 2003. Rules of Procedure Ch. II, Art. 30–34, http:// www.cidh.oas.org/Basicos/basic 16.htm.
Jones, Gareth A. 1998. “Resistance and the Rule of Law in Mexico,” Development & Change 29(3): 499–524.
Kristicevic, Viviana. 2004. Statement before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Transcribed by the Author. San Jose, Costa Rica, 5 July.
La Rue, Frank. 2004. Statement before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Transcribed by the Author. San Jose, Costa Rica, 5 July.
Mack Chang v. Guatemala. 2003, Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Ser. C, No. 101.
Malmud-Goti, Jaime. 1990. “Transitional Governments in the Breach: Why Punish State Criminals?” Human Rights Quarterly 12(1), 11–13.
Mayerfeld, Jamie. 2002. “Who Shall Be Judge?: The United States, the International Criminal Court, and the Global Enforcement of Human Rights,” Human Rights Quarterly 25: 93–129.
Mertus, Julie. 1999. “Only a War Crimes Tribunal: Triumph of the International Community, Pain of the Survivors”, in War Crimes: The Legacy of Nuremberg, Belinda Cooper ed. New York: TV Books.
Peacock, Susan C. and Adriana Beltrans. 2003. Hidden Powers in Post-Conflict Guatemala. Washington Office on Latin America: Washington 2003.
Plan de Sanchez v. Guatemala. 2004. Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Ser. C, No. 105.
Prillaman, William C. 2000. The Judiciary and Democratic Decay in Latin America: Declining Confidence in the Rule of Law. Westport, CT: Praeger.
Recovery of Historical Memory Project. 1999. Guatemala—Never Again! The Official Report of the Human Rights Office, Archdiocese of Guatemale. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books.
Roht-Arriaza, Naomi. “Punishment, Redress, and Pardon: Theoretical and Psychological Approaches,” in Impunity and Human Rights: International Law Practice. New York: Oxford Univesity Press.
Russell, Peter H. 2001. “Toward a General Theory of Judicial Indepence,” in Judicial Independence in the Age of Democracy, Russell, Peter H. and David M. O'Brien eds. Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press.
Street Children v. Guatemala. 2001, Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Ser. C, No. 77.
Teitel, Ruti, Transitional Jurisprudence: The Role of Law in Political Transformation, 106 Yale L.J. 2009, 2054 (1997).
U.S. Department of State (2002) “Country Report on Human Rights Practices—Guatemale.” http:// www.state.gov/www/global/human_rights/.
U.S. Department of State. 2002. “Country Report on Human Rights Practices—El Salvador.” http:// www.state.gov/www/global/human_rights/.
Villacorta, Silvia. 2004. Testimony before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Transcribed by the Author. San Jose, Costa Rica, 6 July.
Widner, Jennifer. 1998. “Courts and Democracy in Post-Conflict Transitions: A Social Scientist's Perspective on the Africa, Case,” American Journal of International Law 95(1), 64–75.
Additional information
The author would like to thank Roxanna Altholz, Adriana Beltran, and Soraya Long for their invaluable assitance in conducting this research.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Davis, J. Struggling through the web of impunity—The Jorge Carpio Nicolle case. Hum Rights Rev 8, 53–66 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12142-006-1015-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12142-006-1015-6