Spanish version available below
On 20 January 2025, a hearing in the case of Claudia González Orellana, human rights lawyer from Guatemala and recipient of the Lawyers for Lawyers Award 2023, will take place. Lawyers for Lawyers will closely monitor the hearings in the case against Ms. González to verify she enjoys all of the due process rights guaranteed to her.
Ms. González has been charged with ‘abuse of authority’ for her previous work as a representative of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), an international body set up through a collaboration between the United Nations and the Guatemalan government.
As a member of the CICIG, Ms. González worked on several high-impact anti-corruption cases. Later, as a lawyer, she dedicated herself to defending former Public Ministry prosecutors and other human rights defenders who were prosecuted for their involvement in anti-corruption cases.
Ms. González was detained on August 28, 2023. After 82 days in detention, she was released and placed under house arrest. The legal proceedings against her have included several irregularities, raising serious questions about the integrity of the legal process. The charges against Ms. González for abuse of authority are generally reserved for public officials, which is not a function she held during her employment with CICIG, as she was not employed by the Guatemalan government service. Her initial hearing was delayed until after the Guatemalan legal requirement to be held within 24 hours of arrest and proceeded without the Public Prosecutor’s presence. Subsequent hearings were conducted behind closed doors without any legal basis.
The upcoming hearing will consider a request by Ms. González to have the judge in charge of her case recused. Lawyers for Lawyers calls for a transparent hearing that upholds all of Ms. González’s rights to due process and a fair trial in accordance with Guatemalan domestic law and international legal standards.
Próxima audiencia en el proceso penal contra Claudia González Orellana
El 20 de enero de 2025, tendrá lugar una audiencia en el caso de Claudia González Orellana, abogada de derechos humanos de Guatemala galardonada con el Premio Lawyers for Lawyers Award 2023. Lawyers for Lawyers seguirá de cerca las audiencias en el caso contra la Sra. González para verificar que se cumplan con todos los derechos del debido proceso que le corresponden.
La Sra. González ha sido acusada de “abuso de autoridad” por su trabajo previo como representante de la Comisión Internacional Contra la Impunidad en Guatemala (CICIG), un organismo internacional creado mediante una colaboración entre las Naciones Unidas y el gobierno guatemalteco.
Como miembro de la CICIG, la Sra. González trabajó en varios casos de alto impacto de lucha contra la corrupción. Más tarde, como abogada, se dedicó a defender a ex fiscales del Ministerio Público y a otros defensores de los derechos humanos que fueron procesados por su actuación en casos anticorrupción.
La Sra. González fue detenida el 28 de agosto de 2023. Tras 82 días detenida, fue puesta en arresto domiciliario. El proceso judicial en su contra ha presentado varias irregularidades, lo que plantea serias dudas sobre la integridad del proceso. Los cargos contra la Sra. González por abuso de autoridad suelen reservarse a los funcionarios públicos, función que no desempeñaba durante su empleo con la CICIG, ya que no era empleada de la administración pública guatemalteca. Su audiencia inicial no cumplió el requisito legal guatemalteco de celebrarse en las 24 horas siguientes a la detención y se desarrolló sin la presencia del fiscal. Las audiencias posteriores se celebraron a puerta cerrada sin fundamento jurídico para ello.
La próxima audiencia considerará una solicitud de la Sra. González para que el juez a cargo de su caso sea recusado. Lawyers for Lawyers pide una audiencia transparente que respete todos los derechos de la Sra. González al debido proceso y a un juicio justo de conformidad con el derecho interno guatemalteco y las normas jurídicas internacionales.
