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UN experts warned on Wednesday that El Salvador is misusing the Interpol law enforcement scheme to further its political agenda by issuing red notices against two Salvadoran human rights defenders in exile.
The experts highlight that the charges and red notices against Ivania Cruz and Rudy Joya, who are in exile in Spain, “appear to be without basis and in direct connection with their legitimate human rights work for UNIDEHC to support communities under threat and denounce the actions of the Government under the state of emergency declared in 2022.”
The state of emergency arose initially because of increased killings by criminal gangs. It has since been regularly renewed, raising numerous human rights concerns.
Cruz and Joya, who both work for UNIDEHC, fled El Salvador due to the legal repercussions of being human rights defenders. UNIDEHC is a non-governmental organization that has continuously exposed serious human rights violations. Particularly, the organization expressed support for the La Floresta community, which faced forced eviction attempts since 2024. Amnesty International reported the detainment of a spokesperson for UNIDEHC, Fidel Zavala, and the arrest of approximately 20 community leaders from La Floresta in February 2025. Amnesty International labelled Zavala’s detention as “particularly concerning” because he had observed and denounced torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment in prison centers. Additionally, UNIDEHC’s offices and Cruz’s home were searched.
Notably, the Irish-based human rights organization, Front Line Defenders, has stated that human rights defenders are often labelled as “traitors of the nation” by authorities in El Salvador. Arrest warrants against community leaders and environmental defenders were also issued in April 2025. Moreover, Salvadorian authorities were previously accused of misusing the criminal justice system and recent legal reforms to silence and suppress human rights defenders.
The UN experts highlight that Article 3 of the ICPO-INTERPOL Constitution explicitly states that “it is strictly forbidden for [Interpol] to undertake any intervention or activities of a political … character.” Article 2 highlights that Interpol aims to conduct its activities “in the spirit of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
The red notices were issued against Cruz and Joya by Interpol in July 2025. The UN experts “call on Interpol to immediately revoke the red notices and judicial sanctions against Ivania Cruz and Rudy Joya, and on Spain to refuse to accede to the red notice and to ensure their safety by rejecting their forcible return to El Salvador.”
The post UN experts condemn use of Interpol red notices against human rights defenders in El Salvador appeared first on JURIST - News.
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The experts highlight that the charges and red notices against Ivania Cruz and Rudy Joya, who are in exile in Spain, “appear to be without basis and in direct connection with their legitimate human rights work for UNIDEHC to support communities under threat and denounce the actions of the Government under the state of emergency declared in 2022.”
The state of emergency arose initially because of increased killings by criminal gangs. It has since been regularly renewed, raising numerous human rights concerns.
Cruz and Joya, who both work for UNIDEHC, fled El Salvador due to the legal repercussions of being human rights defenders. UNIDEHC is a non-governmental organization that has continuously exposed serious human rights violations. Particularly, the organization expressed support for the La Floresta community, which faced forced eviction attempts since 2024. Amnesty International reported the detainment of a spokesperson for UNIDEHC, Fidel Zavala, and the arrest of approximately 20 community leaders from La Floresta in February 2025. Amnesty International labelled Zavala’s detention as “particularly concerning” because he had observed and denounced torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment in prison centers. Additionally, UNIDEHC’s offices and Cruz’s home were searched.
Notably, the Irish-based human rights organization, Front Line Defenders, has stated that human rights defenders are often labelled as “traitors of the nation” by authorities in El Salvador. Arrest warrants against community leaders and environmental defenders were also issued in April 2025. Moreover, Salvadorian authorities were previously accused of misusing the criminal justice system and recent legal reforms to silence and suppress human rights defenders.
The UN experts highlight that Article 3 of the ICPO-INTERPOL Constitution explicitly states that “it is strictly forbidden for [Interpol] to undertake any intervention or activities of a political … character.” Article 2 highlights that Interpol aims to conduct its activities “in the spirit of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
The red notices were issued against Cruz and Joya by Interpol in July 2025. The UN experts “call on Interpol to immediately revoke the red notices and judicial sanctions against Ivania Cruz and Rudy Joya, and on Spain to refuse to accede to the red notice and to ensure their safety by rejecting their forcible return to El Salvador.”
The post UN experts condemn use of Interpol red notices against human rights defenders in El Salvador appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.