Young Chileans Convicted for Assaulting Spanish Police Officer

A Spanish court on Thursday convicted two young Chilean citizens — Rodrigo Lanza Huidobro and Alex Cisternas Am(c)stica — for the 2006 assault of a Spanish police officer. The decision drew a strong reaction from Chilean officials, with many insisting the ruling was based on “lies” and “discrimination.” YOUNG CHILEANS CONVICTED FOR ASSAULTING SPANISH POLICE OFFICER

Santiago Times
Friday, 01 February 2008

Sen. Naranjo: “Arbitrariness and Xenophobia Have Triumphed Over Justice”

A Spanish court on Thursday convicted two young Chilean citizens — Rodrigo Lanza Huidobro and Alex Cisternas Am(c)stica — for the 2006 assault of a Spanish police officer. The decision drew a strong reaction from Chilean officials, with many insisting the ruling was based on “lies” and “discrimination.”

Lanza and Cisternas were arrested on Feb. 4, 2006 for allegedly assaulting a member of Barcelona’s Urban Guard in a street confrontation. During the scuffle, which took place when authorities tried to evict a group of young people occupying a municipal building, the guard received a serious head injury that police claim was caused by a rock thrown by Lanza.

In Thursday’s ruling, Lanza was sentenced to four and a half years behind bars. Additionally, he will have to pay an indemnity of 950,795 euros (US$1.4 million) for the injuries that he allegedly inflicted. Meanwhile, Cisternas will spend three years and three months in jail, but will not have to pay any fine.

In spite of the court’s decision, Lanza and Cisternas continue to insist that they and Argentine Juan Pintos Garrido, who was also on trial in the case, were only passing by when the incident occurred. The men allege they were beaten by police both on the street and at the police station, sustaining injuries that required them to be taken to the hospital. They said that after returning from the hospital, they were beaten again and referred to as “sudacas,” a derogatory term for South Americans. (ST, Dec. 19, 2006)

The case has been criticized by international human rights advocates who note that Lanza, Cisternas, and Pintos were held without bail for nearly two years. The six Europeans also charged in the case, on the other hand, were released on bail.

News of the verdict produced heated reactions from officials in Chile.

“It is very possible that the two were victims of racism,” Amnesty International Chile Executive Director Sergio Laurenti told the Santiago Times. “The fact that the two were never granted provisional freedom and that they were instead kept in jail indicates that they were discriminated against. There was a clear lack of incriminating evidence…and officials took an exceptionally long time to start the trial. All of these indicate serious irregularities.” Still, Laurenti emphasized that the defendants and their families have expressed their determination to appeal the court’s ruling.

“This resolution damages the impression that Iberian-American countries have about Spanish justice. This is a disgraceful verdict. Alex and Rodrigo were convicted without any material proof of their participation in the crime,” Socialist (PS) Sen. Jaime Naranjo said through a press release. “Even worse, the main witness was a police officer who is suspected of having tortured the defendants… arbitrariness and xenophobia have triumphed over justice. Lies have triumphed over the truth.”

Meanwhile, Osvaldo Puccio, Chile’s ambassador to Spain, promised that Chilean officials will continue to support both Lanza and Cisternas and their families.

“The Chilean embassy in Spain has followed Lanza and Cisternas’ case for two years…we have supported their families, visited them in jail, and have tried to extend truly humanitarian gestures. We will keep on doing this because it is our duty, our obligation,” Puccio said in a statement e-mailed to the Santiago Times. He added that Chilean officials are hopeful that Lanza will be released soon because he has already served more than half of his sentence.

Still, Puccio would not comment on the accusations of racism. “It is not my right to comment on the ruling itself,” he said. “But, it is my responsibility to keep on helping their (Lanza and Cisternas) families and their lawyers.”

When contacted by the Santiago Times, officials from the Spanish embassy in Chile declined to comment on the case.

By Matt Malinowski (editorATsantiagotimes.cl)

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