Letter to Spero News in response to Daniel M. Goldstein

March 14, 2008

Via email

To The Editor:

We are grateful to Spero News and to Daniel M. Goldstein for their interest in the activities of the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) in Bolivia. We write regarding the February 1 response written by Mr. Goldstein to HRF's most recent country report on Bolivia. We believe Mr. Goldstein has misinterpreted the content and substance of our concerns and would like to set the record straight.

Contrary to what Mr. Goldstein argues, HRF does not equate lynching with communal justice. Bolivian mobs are increasingly taking justice into their own hands—with the result that lynching has risen dramatically in recent years. Often, individuals in these mobs cite “communal justice” to justify barbaric actions such as hanging, crucifixion, stoning, live burial, and burning. HRF is not mistaking “lynching and other forms of vigilante violence for community justice”—rather, it is the mobs carrying out the lynching that have mistaken the two. HRF is profoundly concerned by the distorted interpretations of community justice resulting in murder, while raising alarm about the impending problem of placing an opaque, unregulated, and discriminatory system of justice on the same constitutional footing as its regulated ordinary counterpart. Hence the need to expose the contradictions within the constitution, proposed by the Morales government, which contains contradictory articles that could imperil transparency in the administration of justice.

We wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Goldstein that the dramatic increase in mob lynching, since Evo Morales became president, is not a product of the government party's philosophy or activities. However, we note with profound concern President Morales has said that disenfranchised groups should employ communal justice and added that his government supports lashing as a “symbolic” means of imparting communal justice. Instead of taking a public stand against vigilante justice and mob killings, the government of Bolivia has only fanned the flames while having no proposed solution to the rise in lynching on their watch. President Morales seeks to institutionalize communal justice. We believe it is vital to sound an alarm about the perils of so doing without properly regulating the administration of justice under that system.

We appreciate Mr. Goldstein’s recommendation and references to other NGOs that are carrying out invaluable work in Bolivia, while profiting from this opportunity to invite Spero News readers to read an updated version of HRF's report posted on our website, documenting even more lynching that has come to light since our initial report was published.

Sincerely yours,

Thor Halvorssen
President
Human Rights Foundation
New York, NY
www.humanrightsfoundation.org