The Unit for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders of Guatemala -UDEFEGUA- reports annually on the aggressions against individuals, communities and organisations that defend human rights. Without a doubt, one of the phenomena that has generated the greatest concern in recent years is the increase in actions that result in the deprivation of life; from 2017 to 2019, UDEFEGUA recorded a total of 93 murders against human rights defenders,

This report aims to show whether the actions taken by the State have ensured justice and helped to combat impunity for these human rights violations, specifically to monitor the due diligence in the investigation, prosecution and punishment of those responsible, one of the main objectives being the effectiveness of the implementation of General Instruction 05-2018 of the Public Prosecutor’s Office which approves the Protocol for the Investigation of Crimes Committed against Human Rights Defenders,     The report is organised in four chapters, starting with the doctrinal foundations of International Human Rights Law, the general data of the cases under investigation, the methodology used, the results on the procedural situation of the cases and final reflections.

Find the original document here in Spanish (Unit for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders of Guatemala).