home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
TIME: Almanac 1993
/
TIME Almanac 1993.iso
/
time
/
101491
/
1014007.000
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1992-08-28
|
1KB
|
32 lines
WORLD, Page 41World NotesEL SALVADORKillers or Fall Guys?
Who ordered the killings of six Jesuit priests and two women
that rocked El Salvador in 1989? And who participated in the
subsequent cover-up? Although a Salvadoran court last week held
two army officers responsible for the murders and acquitted
seven lower-ranking soldiers, the answers to those questions may
never be resolved. With the government under U.S. pressure to
punish the perpetrators, the convictions of a colonel and a
lieutenant capped a 20-month investigation and three-day trial.
But suspicions linger that the two officers may be fall guys for
higher-ranking officers who plotted the predawn massacre.
The jury's decision to convict military officers for
politically motivated murders is a first for El Salvador. But
the country's justice system remains shaky. The identities of
the five jury members were kept secret to safeguard them against
possible retribution. And the presiding judge plans to leave the
country after the sentencing next month. As for the convicted
felons, their time behind bars may be short: President Alfredo
Cristiani has not ruled out a possible amnesty.