A/HRC/45/45/Add.2 inalienable rights is as fallacious as it is illegitimate. The victims and their families are entitled both to the truth and to justice for the violations suffered; forcing them to choose between the two rights is clearly unacceptable. B. Criminal investigation and prosecution 37. Since the Amnesty Act was declared unconstitutional, various criminal cases have been opened, most of them derived from complaints submitted by victims. Emblematic cases such as the El Calabozo massacre, the killing of the Jesuits and the execution of Archbishop Romero were reopened, although no progress has been recorded. Lack of will on the part of the judicial authorities, insufficient action by the Attorney General’s Office and lack of human rights training for members of the judiciary are all factors that perpetuate the absence of progress. 38. In the case of the El Mozote massacre, which has been the subject of a conviction ruling by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, progress has been made in the proceedings, but no trial has been held. However, officials of the Inter-American Court reported in August 2018 that the State had not allocated sufficient resources to the criminal investigation of the case, which was being handled by the Second Court of Investigation of San Francisco Gotera, under Judge Jorge Guzmán Urquilla. 23 In response, the Supreme Court decided that the court should limit its previously mixed jurisdiction to criminal cases. 39. In response to the growing number of claims following the declaration of unconstitutionality of the Amnesty Act, the Attorney General’s Office established a special unit of six prosecutors, supported by six police officers, to investigate the violations committed during the armed conflict. It also developed a criminal investigation policy for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in the context of the armed conflict, which was prepared with the support of OHCHR and the participation of civil society organizations. 40. According to information received from civil society during the visit, as at February 2019, of the total of 148 cases registered by the Attorney General’s Office, no investigation had been undertaken in 102 cases, some investigations had been conducted in 46 cases and 17 cases had been opened only to authorize exhumations. None of these 148 cases have gone to trial. Eight cases are waiting to be heard by the criminal courts, and 12 by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court. According to information received from the Attorney General’s Office, 16 cases have been brought to court, summonses have been issued in several cases and an arrest warrant has been issued. 24 During its visit in December 2019, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights was informed that 180 cases had been opened up to that point.25 41. The Special Rapporteur notes with satisfaction the adoption of the criminal investigation policy, the establishment of the special team of prosecutors and the progress made since it was established in terms of the opening and processing of cases. However, he cautions that these developments are insufficient and considers it crucial that the unit’s capacity and staff should be expanded to ensure that judicial proceedings are expedited. The Special Rapporteur also notes with satisfaction the positive assessment made by the Office of the Human Rights Advocate regarding the closeness and interrelationship of the team of four prosecutors with victims, in contrast to what happens in other sectors of the Attorney General’s Office.26 42. During his visit, the Special Rapporteur received numerous reports that, in the course of hearing claims of human rights violations related to the conflict, officials of the Attorney General’s Office asked the claimants to provide evidence or witnesses for their case. In discussions with officials of the Office, the Special Rapporteur was informed that 23 24 25 26 GE.20-09158 www.dplf.org/es/resources/el-juicio-por-la-masacre-de-el-mozote-continua. www.dplf.org/es/resources/infografia-denuncias-de-casos-sobre-conflicto-armado-presentadas-porlas-victimas-ante-el. http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/media_center/preleases/2019/335.asp. www.pddh.gob.sv/civiles/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/InformeSeguimiento-a-situaci%C3%B3n-dev%C3%ADctims-de-graves-violaciones-a-derechoshumanos234-1.pdf, April 2019, p. 18. 9