Montt went on trial in March on charges of genocide for allegedly targeting an entire Mayan community in the country’s highlands in a campaign to wipe out support for leftist rebels.
At least 17-hundred people were killed, according to prosecutors and witnesses.
As the Rios Montt trial drew to a close, it was suspended over procedural issues that could annul the process. Defense lawyers, who argued the general did not order the killings, welcomed the move.
"It's a very important precedent for the country in an important case such as this one," said defense lawyer Danilo Rodriguez.
But others say the maneuvering reflects the difficulties in prosecuting human rights violations in countries like Guatemala, where judicial institutions are subject to pressure.
Via Skype, international law expert Paul Seils said, "What we have at this point are the forces who are basically saying: ‘We will not be subjected to the rule of the law in the country. The rules of the country are for other people. We will not accept a statement that we were involved in genocide or crimes against humanity.'"
Despite the legal limbo, putting the ex-dictator on trial was unprecedented, the first time a former head of state has been tried for genocide by his own country’s legal system.
"To go after somebody who has been the quintessential representation of unlimited power, such as Rios Montt, and to charge him with human rights abuses, but not just any rights abuses, but with genocide, reveals tremendous courage but also some important change that the society has been going through," said Jose Miguel Vivanco of Human Rights Watch.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
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2013-11-25
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2013-11-25