Personalities come out in defense of former Chilean presidential candidate

Members of the Permanent Conference of Political Parties of Latin America (Copppal), jurists and politicians from the region came out today in support of the former Chilean presidential candidate Marco Enríquez-Ominami, who denounced the violation of his rights politicians. In a letter signed by 60 personalities, including the general coordinator of the Progressive International David Adler and the Colombian senator Gustavo Petro, the signatories promised to follow up on the case to guarantee due process. The member and founder of the Puebla Group has denounced how, since 2015, he has suffered a strong judicial and communication offensive against his political rights and democratic participation, which remain restricted until today and prevented him from participating in the process of the new constituent in Chile. Enriquez-Ominami appealed to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) after his political rights were suspended due to a criminal investigation against him six years ago. According to the notice m, As in other countries, in which justice was used in an anomalous way to destabilize political leaders or parties, in Chile we also observe elements that mix a strong media and judicial offensive that compromise the biography and public image of candidates. It also adds that early sentencing for processes that have not respected due legal process and the presumption of innocence affect democratic normality and the integrity of the right to political participation. In the letter, those who subscribe it reiterate their commitment in defense of democracy and justice, which presupposes the observance of legal, constitutional and conventional guarantees that, in a situation of economic and political austerity, seem to have been sacrificed by the instrumental use of exceptional criminal proceedings'. The document adds to the recent support of former presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff (Brazil), Ernesto Samper (Colombia) and Rafael Correa (Ecuador). The ex-presidents affirmed that the case against Enríquez-Ominami is another legal war with which progressive leaders of the region are persecuted, restricting their political rights to choose and be elected, their mobility or their geographical roots.