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A review by brien_k
The Art of Political Murder: Who Killed the Bishop? by Francisco Goldman
5.0
Update (April, 2016): Even better the second time!
Original Review (August, 2012):
Goldman relates the story of the murder of Bishop Gerardi, a priest in the Archdiocese of Guatemala City and the leader of one of them most important human rights groups following the civil war peace accords were signed in Guatemala i 1996.
Just a few days after his organization published an in-depth, name-providing book that detailed many of the atrocities of the civil war (i.e., massacres, rapes, disappearances, murders, torture, kidnappings), Gerardi was murdered one night after pulling into his garage.
Goldman painstakingly presents the details of the case, the sham and corrupt investigations, the 'real' investigation, the trial, and some of the political aftermath of the murder. He details how the suspects changed from a gang running stolen Church goods, to a German shepherd dog, to a non-existent gay lover, and finally to the actual murderers (elite members of the Guatemalan Army, including, possibly, current high-ranking officials).
The depths of the corruption and danger surrounding the case (and most of Guatemala's judicial system in the late 90s and early 2000s) is astounding. Time after time, judges, prosecutors, witnesses, and investigators were forced to flee Guatemala with their families to protect their lives. As I was reading the book, I kept thinking to myself that, while I know the USA government has its own issues with corruption and scandal, it doesn't compare to the cover-up of this one murder - and by extension the hundreds of thousands more that happened during the civil war.
Original Review (August, 2012):
Goldman relates the story of the murder of Bishop Gerardi, a priest in the Archdiocese of Guatemala City and the leader of one of them most important human rights groups following the civil war peace accords were signed in Guatemala i 1996.
Just a few days after his organization published an in-depth, name-providing book that detailed many of the atrocities of the civil war (i.e., massacres, rapes, disappearances, murders, torture, kidnappings), Gerardi was murdered one night after pulling into his garage.
Goldman painstakingly presents the details of the case, the sham and corrupt investigations, the 'real' investigation, the trial, and some of the political aftermath of the murder. He details how the suspects changed from a gang running stolen Church goods, to a German shepherd dog, to a non-existent gay lover, and finally to the actual murderers (elite members of the Guatemalan Army, including, possibly, current high-ranking officials).
The depths of the corruption and danger surrounding the case (and most of Guatemala's judicial system in the late 90s and early 2000s) is astounding. Time after time, judges, prosecutors, witnesses, and investigators were forced to flee Guatemala with their families to protect their lives. As I was reading the book, I kept thinking to myself that, while I know the USA government has its own issues with corruption and scandal, it doesn't compare to the cover-up of this one murder - and by extension the hundreds of thousands more that happened during the civil war.