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by Kurt Ver Beek, AJS co-founder
Above left: AJS co-founder Kurt Ver Beek, against whom the charges were formally filed, with ASJ lawyer Veronica Murillo. Center: every last seat in the gallery was taken up by AJS supporters. Right: SETECH's lawyer, Marcelino Vargas, sits alone--his client never showed up.
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March 1, 2010. Tegucigalpa.
Not everyone reading this will believe me, but I feel like we saw a miracle last Wednesday morning.
As you'll remember, Wednesday was when the trial against Asociación para una Sociedad más Justa—and against me!—in response to allegations of slander against us filed by private security company, and notorious labor-rights violator, SETECH, was slated to begin. Many of us are uncomfortable with miracle talk, but I know that thousands of people read about the trial and hundreds took time to pray and send emails asking, not for the court to rule in our favor, but simply to rule justly. We got emails from places like Minnesota and Mozambique.
A Miracle in the Trial Against ASJ
On Wednesday morning I was praying and felt like God was saying that we were going to see something miraculous. About an hour later we walked into the courtroom. SETECH owner Richard Swasey’s lawyer was there, sanz his normal dapper suit and tie, and he said there was not going to be a trial—he hadn’t heard from Swasey in about six months and said he had just shown up to see what the judges would say about the case. Who would have predicted—the accuser doesn’t even show up!—pretty miraculous.
A Miracle in the Trial Against Dionisio’s Killers
But if you need some more convincing, I will give you a little more context. The trial of the hitmen who killed ASJ labor-rights lawyer Dionisio Díaz was almost exactly one year ago. Like last week, at that time too there were thousands who were praying, sending emails, etc. The case had gone alright but not great for the prosecutors. (The lawyer defending the accused killers was the same lawyer accusing ASJ in last week’s trial—he is one of the most famous lawyers in Honduras and makes about $50,000 a case). The trial was over except for the final arguments, and we at ASJ were worried. The prosecutors seemed tired and rattled. We had offered to help them with their closing arguments, but they had said "No." So I had arrived early to the courtroom, was praying, and again felt like God told me not to worry, I was going to see something miraculous (this does NOT happen very often to me). About ten minutes later someone came in and told me that one of the judges had been stung by a bee in his office, had an allergic reaction, fainted, and was on his way to the emergency room—and the trial would be postponed. We ended up having a three-day recess, the prosecutors asked for our help with closing statements, and, when the trial was called back into session, Dionisio’s killers—both former mid-level SETECH employees—were found guilty. Who would have predicted—a bee in the judge's office, an allergic reaction, and the prosecutors asking for help—pretty miraculous.
“So Swasey Flinched”
Back to the trial against ASJ. So the judges last week set a new date for the trial, November 2010. Many friends had told us from the beginning, when SETECH filed these charges against is three years ago, not to go to trial, because even with a strong case you cannot be confident that the other side will not try use favors or bribes to win. Keep the case in appeals, drag it out, they said. But we knew that we had a strong case and we did not want Swasey or anyone else to have grounds to claim that we at ASJ who seek to make the justice system work for others are afraid of it ourselves. We prepped for months and by the end were convinced our case was even stronger than we had first thought. We had lots of support in Honduras and internationally, we had support in the media, we were praying, and we were not afraid.
Swasey, on the other hand, knew the date of the trial since it was announced back in June, and had obviously paid his very expensive lawyer a hefty advance to get the case to this point. His best-case scenario was beating us in court. He could crow to the media about how ASJ was a “bad” organization, and then sue to have our legal status revoked and sue for damages that could completely wipe out all our assets. But if he was not sure he could win, his second-best strategy would be to figure out how to keep the case in court and make us continue to prepare and waste time and energy on a case that would never go to trial.
So Swasey flinched. He was afraid he was going to lose. He was suing us and he didn’t even show up. And if we go to court in November, we can expect that he will have some other excuse not to show up on that date, either. So we will now do our best to get the case dismissed, or to now make Swasey and his lawyers invest time and money to answer our appeals, or to drop their case.
Now, when I describe it like this it doesn’t sound so miraculous does it? But let’s look at it another way: Swasey has one of the best lawyers in Honduras, he and his lawyer are very well connected, very wealthy, and not shy about using whatever means possible to win. The Honduran court system is renowned for corruption, and a case like this would be a prime candidate. ASJ is a little NGO in Honduras, only ten years old, has only 55 employees, and in its short life has made some powerful enemies because of its work of uncovering corruption. We were nervous about going to trial, especially since even some people very close to us said we couldn’t win. And given all that, Swasey does not even show up—pretty miraculous.
Thank You for Being Part of the Miracle
So I want to thank all of you who were a part of this miracle. Thank you for reading and praying and emailing. I believe that God is on the side of justice. And while I do not confess to understand how prayer works, I believe it does. I believe we have now seen two miracles in these cases. And I also believe we have taken another good size step toward creating a more just society here in Honduras. Thanks for being a part of it. I hope you will continue to support us on this journey.
Kurt Ver Beek
AJS co-founder and board member
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¹ASJ
is a Honduran, Christian, non-governmental organization that provides
legal services to impoverished individuals and carries out research and
advocacy in areas such as land rights, labor rights, corruption, and
aid for victims of rape and sexual abuse. Association for a More Just
Society (AJS) is a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to
promoting justice in Honduras, including doing so by providing grants
to ASJ and monitoring and overseeing their execution. Return to top
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