Murdered scholars of UCA
Encyclopedia
The massacre of six Jesuit scholars/priests, their housekeeper and her daughter took place on November 16, 1989, at the campus of Universidad Centroamericana "José Simeón Cañas" (UCA) in San Salvador
, El Salvador
. The tragic event is commemorated each November 15-16th at UCA, with a demonstration, as well as religious and cultural activities. This commemoration is also dedicated to all the people who either disappeared or lost their lives during the Salvadoran Civil War. According to the report presented by the Commission on the Truth for El Salvador
, "thousands and thousands" of persons disappeared or lost their lives during the period of 1980-1991 in El Salvador, as a direct consequence of this conflict. A summary of this report specifies that there were around 75,000 persons who were either killed or who disappeared during this period, as a direct result of the conflict. Already in 1988, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights estimated that around 60,000 people had either disappeared or lost their lives because of this war, which officially ended in 1992. Additionally, millions had to leave the country as a direct or indirect consequence of the war.
The political implications of the scholars' commitment to their work and ideas met strong opposition from the conservative
religious and political forces in El Salvador. This opposition led to this massacre, which was carried out by the Salvadoran army
, on November 16, 1989. These scholars, priests and domestic workers were massacred at their own residence in UCA. Their murder marked a turning point in the Salvadoran civil war
(see History of El Salvador
). On the one hand it increased international pressures on the Salvadoran government to sign peace agreements with the guerrilla
organization
FMLN. On the other, it helped make their ideas (until then known only in Latin America
and Spain
), become known worldwide.
Ignacio Ellacuría
, S.J.
Ignacio Martín-Baró
, S.J.
Segundo Montes
, S.J.
Juan Ramón Moreno, S.J.
Joaquín López y López, S.J.
Amando López, S.J.
Elba Ramos
Celina Ramos (15 years old, daughter of Elba Ramos)
, an elite unit of the Salvadoran Army
, November 16, 1989. The Atlacatl Battalion, a former Salvadoran Army unit, was a rapid-response, counter-insurgency
battalion
created in 1980 at the U.S. Army's School of the Americas
, then located in Panama
. It was implicated in some of the most infamous incidents of the Salvadoran Civil War. It was named for Atlacatl
, a legendary figure from Salvadoran history
.
the people who are responsible for this massacre. One of the persons mentioned by the report is the lawyer and politician Rodoflo Parker, who currently leads the Christian Democratic Party (El Salvador)
and is also a deputy (legislator)
, in the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador
. He allegedly "altered statements in order to conceal the responsibility of senior officers for the murder".
The jesuits in El Salvador have never given up the case. Their express purpose has not been to punish the authors and perpetrators of this crime, but to find out the truth about this massacre. The work with this case has been led by José María Tojeira, UCA's former rector. They have received the technical support of UCA's Institute of Human Rights - IDHUCA. This institute was founded by Segundo Montes, one of the slain scholars during this massacre. The work done by IDHUCA and the jesuits has mainly consisted in trying to use the mechanisms available through the Inter-American Court of Human Rights
, in order to bypass the Salvadoran Amnesty Law of 1993 and.
and 14 members of the Salvadoran Military, for the direct responsibility of this massacre. Judge Eloy Velasco
admitted this lawsuit in 2009, on the basis of the principle of universal justice.
According to José María Tojeria, the Jesuits and UCA, had nothing to do with this lawsuit.
During the course of this judicial process, an unknown witness in the case confessed about his participation in this massacre, implicating the High Command of the Salvadoran Military, as well as former president Alfredo Cristiani
. Judge Velasco's resolution on the demand, initially included investigations on the 14 implicated members of the Salvadoran Military, excluding the former Salvadoran president, but including the Military High Command, represented by General (Colonel, at that time) René Emilio Ponce (who then was chief of defence
of El Salvador). However, this new testimony has opened up for the investigation of former president Cristiani as well. Some of the most compelling evidence that has been available for journalists, consists of notes taken by hand, during a meeting of the Salvadoran Military's High Command. The massacre was allegedly planned during this meeting, and both the military's High Command and the country's Executive, were probably aware, if not directly involved, in these planning meetings. Declassified documents by the CIA have recently shed new light on this case. These documents indicate that the CIA had for many years had knowledge of the Salvadoran government's plans to murder the Jesuits.
On May 30th, 2011, the court ruled against 20 Salvadoran members of the military, and ordered their immediate arrest internationally. President Cristiaini was not included in the ruling, but all of the other accused were found guilty on the counts of murder, terrorism and crimes against humanity. According to the substantiation of the ruling, the accused took advantage of an initial war context, to perpetrate violations to human rights, with the aggravating character of xenophobia. Five of the murdered scholars were originally Spanish citizens. The propaganda against them that prepared the context for the murder called them leftist neoimperialists from Spain, who were in El Salvador to reinstate colonialism.
If all of the sentences are added, the accused could serve up to 270 years in prison.
The ruling of the Spanish court specifies that the Jesuits were murdered for having made efforts to end the Salvadoran civil war peacefully. The planning of the murder started when peace negotiations between the Salvadoran government and the FMLN were broken, in 1989. The leadership of the Salvadoran military were convinced that they could win the war against FMLN militarily. Therefore, they interpreted Ignacio Ellacuria's efforts for peace negotiations as an inconvenience that had to be eliminated.
The operation against the Jesuits involved cooperation between several military institutions. It consisted of a psychological campaign to delegitimize the Jesuits in the media, accusing them of conspiracy and cooperation with FMLN; military raids against the university, and the Jesuits' home, in order to map and plan the operation; and finally, the massacre, perpetrated by the Atlacatl battalion.
awarded the Order of José Matías Delgado
, Grand Cross with Gold Star, to the six murdered scholars/priests. This is the greatest recognition that can be granted by the Salvadoran government. President Mauricio Funes was formed by the jesuits in El Salvador, by attending and graduating from both Externado San José
and Universidad Centroamericana "José Simeón Cañas". Funes knew personally the slain scholars, and considered some of them his personal friends. He has mentioned his relationship to the murdered scholars of UCA as of particular significance in his professional and personal development and.
Several academic chairs and research centers in the world, are named after some of these slain intellectuals. For example the "Ignacio Ellacuría" chair, at Universidad Iberoamericana
in Mexico or at Universidad Carlos III in Madrid, Spain. Other examples are the Ignacio Martín-Baró Fund for Mental Health and Human Rights in Boston College and the Segundo Montes
community in Morazán, which consists of repatriated refugees. Segundo Montes' research and activism was dedicated to defending the rights of Salvadoran refugees.
Most of these scholars are also credited for lasting contributions to the fields of philosophy, (liberation) theology (Ellacuría), psychology (Martin-Baró) and social anthropology/migration studies (Montes). Their work is still a fundamental reference to study the Central American region. Much of what they wrote was not ready for publication. Some of it has been published by, among others, UCA Editores. But there is still a lot of their material, which has not been categorized or published.
San Salvador
The city of San Salvador the capital and largest city of El Salvador, which has been designated a Gamma World City. Its complete name is La Ciudad de Gran San Salvador...
, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
. The tragic event is commemorated each November 15-16th at UCA, with a demonstration, as well as religious and cultural activities. This commemoration is also dedicated to all the people who either disappeared or lost their lives during the Salvadoran Civil War. According to the report presented by the Commission on the Truth for El Salvador
Commission on the Truth for El Salvador
The Truth Commission for El Salvador was a truth commission established by the United Nations to investigate and report on human rights abuses during the civil war in El Salvador ....
, "thousands and thousands" of persons disappeared or lost their lives during the period of 1980-1991 in El Salvador, as a direct consequence of this conflict. A summary of this report specifies that there were around 75,000 persons who were either killed or who disappeared during this period, as a direct result of the conflict. Already in 1988, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights estimated that around 60,000 people had either disappeared or lost their lives because of this war, which officially ended in 1992. Additionally, millions had to leave the country as a direct or indirect consequence of the war.
Summary
All those murdered were employees of Universidad Centroamericana "José Simeón Cañas", in San Salvador, El Salvador. Six of them were scholars and catholic priests (Ignacio, Segundo, Ignacio, Juan Ramón, Joaquín and Amando). One of those murdered(Elba) was employed as a domestic worker at the university residence and Celina was Elba's daughter.The political implications of the scholars' commitment to their work and ideas met strong opposition from the conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
religious and political forces in El Salvador. This opposition led to this massacre, which was carried out by the Salvadoran army
Military of El Salvador
The Armed Forces of El Salvador, in Spanish Fuerza Armada de El Salvador is the official name of the combined armed forces of El Salvador...
, on November 16, 1989. These scholars, priests and domestic workers were massacred at their own residence in UCA. Their murder marked a turning point in the Salvadoran civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
(see History of El Salvador
History of El Salvador
The history of El Salvador has been a history of struggle against conquistadors, empires, dictatorships and world powers to be free. El Salvador was one of the regions that resisted the Spanish invasion led by Pedro de Alvarado who had to fight Atlantica and retreat several times back to Guatemala...
). On the one hand it increased international pressures on the Salvadoran government to sign peace agreements with the guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
organization
Organization
An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...
FMLN. On the other, it helped make their ideas (until then known only in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
), become known worldwide.
Victims
Ignacio Ellacuría
Ignacio Ellacuría, S.J. was a Jesuit priest, philosopher, and theologian who did important work as a professor and rector at the Universidad Centroamericana "José Simeón Cañas" , a Jesuit university in El Salvador founded in 1965...
, S.J.
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
Ignacio Martín-Baró
Ignacio Martín-Baró, S.J. was a scholar, social psychologist, philosopher and Jesuit priest...
, S.J.
Segundo Montes
Segundo Montes, S.J. was a scholar, philosopher, educator, sociologist and Jesuit priest...
, S.J.
Perpetrators
The massacre was performed by the Atlacatl BattalionAtlacatl Battalion
The Atlacatl Battalion, a former Salvadoran Army unit, was a rapid-response, counter-insurgency battalion created in 1980 at the U.S. Army's School of the Americas, then located in Panama. It was implicated in some of the most infamous incidents of the Salvadoran Civil War...
, an elite unit of the Salvadoran Army
Salvadoran Army
The Salvadoran Army or Ejército Salvadoreño is the land branch and largest of the Military of El Salvador. In 2006 the government of El Salvador approached the Israeli ambassador to El Salvador seeking assistance in modernizing its army.-The Football War:...
, November 16, 1989. The Atlacatl Battalion, a former Salvadoran Army unit, was a rapid-response, counter-insurgency
Counter-insurgency
A counter-insurgency or counterinsurgency involves actions taken by the recognized government of a nation to contain or quell an insurgency taken up against it...
battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
created in 1980 at the U.S. Army's School of the Americas
Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation
The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation , formerly the United States Army School of the Americas is a United States Department of Defense educational and training facility at Fort Benning near Columbus, Georgia in the United States...
, then located in Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
. It was implicated in some of the most infamous incidents of the Salvadoran Civil War. It was named for Atlacatl
Atlacatl
Atlacatl is reputed to have been the name of the last ruler of a polity which was based around the center of Cuzcatlán, in the southwestern periphery of Mesoamerica , at the time of the Spanish conquest....
, a legendary figure from Salvadoran history
History of El Salvador
The history of El Salvador has been a history of struggle against conquistadors, empires, dictatorships and world powers to be free. El Salvador was one of the regions that resisted the Spanish invasion led by Pedro de Alvarado who had to fight Atlantica and retreat several times back to Guatemala...
.
1991 Trial
According to a trial conducted in 1991, the murder was ordered by officers of the Salvadoran Army. Nine members of the Salvadoran military were trialed, but there was only enough evidence to convict colonel Guillermo Benavides and lieutenant Yusshy René Mendoza. The others were either absolved, or found guilty of other less compelling crimes. Benavides and Mendoza were to serve 30 years in prison. However, they were both liberated on April 1, 1993, as a result of the Salvadoran Amnesty Law. This law was approved with the purpose of avoiding a witch hunt, after the Salvadoran civil war. The results of this trial were confirmed by the report presented by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of El Salvador. This report additionally explains how members of the Salvadoran Military, as well as other recognized figures of political life in El Salvador, concealed vital information, in order to cover upCover Up
Cover Up is an American action/adventure television series that aired for one season on CBS from September 22, 1984 to April 6, 1985. Created by Glen A. Larson, the series stars Jennifer O'Neill, Jon-Erik Hexum, Antony Hamilton, and Richard Anderson....
the people who are responsible for this massacre. One of the persons mentioned by the report is the lawyer and politician Rodoflo Parker, who currently leads the Christian Democratic Party (El Salvador)
Christian Democratic Party (El Salvador)
The Christian Democratic Party is a political party in El Salvador.In the legislative elections, held on 16 March 2003, the party won 7.3% of the popular vote and 5 out of 84 seats in the Legislative Assembly. In the presidential election of 21 March 2004, the PDC supported Héctor Silva Argüello...
and is also a deputy (legislator)
Deputy (legislator)
A deputy is a legislator in many countries, particularly those with legislatures styled as a 'Chamber of Deputies' or 'National Assembly'.-List of countries:This is an list of countries using the term 'deputy' or one of its cognates....
, in the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador
Legislative Assembly of El Salvador
The Legislative Assembly is the legislative branch of the government of El Salvador.The Salvadoran legislature is a unicameral body....
. He allegedly "altered statements in order to conceal the responsibility of senior officers for the murder".
The jesuits in El Salvador have never given up the case. Their express purpose has not been to punish the authors and perpetrators of this crime, but to find out the truth about this massacre. The work with this case has been led by José María Tojeira, UCA's former rector. They have received the technical support of UCA's Institute of Human Rights - IDHUCA. This institute was founded by Segundo Montes, one of the slain scholars during this massacre. The work done by IDHUCA and the jesuits has mainly consisted in trying to use the mechanisms available through the Inter-American Court of Human Rights
Inter-American Court of Human Rights
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is an autonomous judicial institution based in the city of San José, Costa Rica. Together with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, it makes up the human rights protection system of the Organization of American States , which serves to uphold and...
, in order to bypass the Salvadoran Amnesty Law of 1993 and.
Spanish court reopens the case
In 2008, two human rights organizations, The Center for Justice and Accountability and The Spanish Association for Human Rights, filed lawsuit in a Spanish court, against the former Salvadoran president Alfredo CristianiAlfredo Cristiani
Alfredo Félix Cristiani Burkard, popularly known as Alfredo Cristiani was President of El Salvador from 1989 to 1994....
and 14 members of the Salvadoran Military, for the direct responsibility of this massacre. Judge Eloy Velasco
Eloy Velasco
Eloy Velasco is a Spanish High Court Judge, known for being responsible to determine whether or not six former Bush officials should face criminal charges in Spain...
admitted this lawsuit in 2009, on the basis of the principle of universal justice.
According to José María Tojeria, the Jesuits and UCA, had nothing to do with this lawsuit.
During the course of this judicial process, an unknown witness in the case confessed about his participation in this massacre, implicating the High Command of the Salvadoran Military, as well as former president Alfredo Cristiani
Alfredo Cristiani
Alfredo Félix Cristiani Burkard, popularly known as Alfredo Cristiani was President of El Salvador from 1989 to 1994....
. Judge Velasco's resolution on the demand, initially included investigations on the 14 implicated members of the Salvadoran Military, excluding the former Salvadoran president, but including the Military High Command, represented by General (Colonel, at that time) René Emilio Ponce (who then was chief of defence
Chief of Defence
The Chief of Defence is the highest ranked commissioned officer of a nation's armed forces. The term CHOD is in common use within NATO and the European Union as a generic term for the highest national military position within the NATO and EU member states, rather than the actual term used for...
of El Salvador). However, this new testimony has opened up for the investigation of former president Cristiani as well. Some of the most compelling evidence that has been available for journalists, consists of notes taken by hand, during a meeting of the Salvadoran Military's High Command. The massacre was allegedly planned during this meeting, and both the military's High Command and the country's Executive, were probably aware, if not directly involved, in these planning meetings. Declassified documents by the CIA have recently shed new light on this case. These documents indicate that the CIA had for many years had knowledge of the Salvadoran government's plans to murder the Jesuits.
On May 30th, 2011, the court ruled against 20 Salvadoran members of the military, and ordered their immediate arrest internationally. President Cristiaini was not included in the ruling, but all of the other accused were found guilty on the counts of murder, terrorism and crimes against humanity. According to the substantiation of the ruling, the accused took advantage of an initial war context, to perpetrate violations to human rights, with the aggravating character of xenophobia. Five of the murdered scholars were originally Spanish citizens. The propaganda against them that prepared the context for the murder called them leftist neoimperialists from Spain, who were in El Salvador to reinstate colonialism.
If all of the sentences are added, the accused could serve up to 270 years in prison.
The ruling of the Spanish court specifies that the Jesuits were murdered for having made efforts to end the Salvadoran civil war peacefully. The planning of the murder started when peace negotiations between the Salvadoran government and the FMLN were broken, in 1989. The leadership of the Salvadoran military were convinced that they could win the war against FMLN militarily. Therefore, they interpreted Ignacio Ellacuria's efforts for peace negotiations as an inconvenience that had to be eliminated.
The operation against the Jesuits involved cooperation between several military institutions. It consisted of a psychological campaign to delegitimize the Jesuits in the media, accusing them of conspiracy and cooperation with FMLN; military raids against the university, and the Jesuits' home, in order to map and plan the operation; and finally, the massacre, perpetrated by the Atlacatl battalion.
Recognition
On the 20th anniversary of the massacre, president Mauricio FunesMauricio Funes
Carlos Mauricio Funes Cartagena is the President of El Salvador. He won the 2009 presidential election as the candidate of the left-wing Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front political party and took office on 1 June 2009.-Biography:Funes is married to Dr. Vanada Pignado, who was involved in...
awarded the Order of José Matías Delgado
Order of José Matías Delgado
The National Order of Doctor José Matías Delgado is an honour awarded in El Salvador. The order is named after José Matías Delgado who was a priest and doctor known as The Father of the Salvadoran Fatherland...
, Grand Cross with Gold Star, to the six murdered scholars/priests. This is the greatest recognition that can be granted by the Salvadoran government. President Mauricio Funes was formed by the jesuits in El Salvador, by attending and graduating from both Externado San José
Externado San José
Externado San José is a private and Catholic school run by the Society of Jesus in San Salvador, El Salvador.-Brief history:A recognized Catholic and private institution of basic and secondary education run by the Jesuits. It was founded in 1921 and operated as a school for boys until the 1970s,...
and Universidad Centroamericana "José Simeón Cañas". Funes knew personally the slain scholars, and considered some of them his personal friends. He has mentioned his relationship to the murdered scholars of UCA as of particular significance in his professional and personal development and.
Several academic chairs and research centers in the world, are named after some of these slain intellectuals. For example the "Ignacio Ellacuría" chair, at Universidad Iberoamericana
Universidad Iberoamericana
The Ibero-American University is a Mexican private institution of higher education sponsored by the Society of Jesus...
in Mexico or at Universidad Carlos III in Madrid, Spain. Other examples are the Ignacio Martín-Baró Fund for Mental Health and Human Rights in Boston College and the Segundo Montes
Segundo Montes, Morazán
Segundo Montes, Morazán is a community in Morazán Department, El Salvador, formed in 1990 by repatriated refugees who had fled the country's civil war...
community in Morazán, which consists of repatriated refugees. Segundo Montes' research and activism was dedicated to defending the rights of Salvadoran refugees.
Most of these scholars are also credited for lasting contributions to the fields of philosophy, (liberation) theology (Ellacuría), psychology (Martin-Baró) and social anthropology/migration studies (Montes). Their work is still a fundamental reference to study the Central American region. Much of what they wrote was not ready for publication. Some of it has been published by, among others, UCA Editores. But there is still a lot of their material, which has not been categorized or published.