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Paraguay: OAS Secretary General Calls for Peace in Paraguay

  April 1, 2017

-Also expresses condolences over death of political leader

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, today urged the political forces of Paraguay to respect peace and democracy and, in particular, called on the government and the judiciary of the country to investigate the events and to punish those responsible for the death of the political leader Rodrigo Quintana.

Secretary General Almagro expressed his condolences over the death of the young political leader and expressed his solidarity with his relatives and their search for truth, justice and punishment of the guilty.

"Violence is not the way to resolve political conflicts in democracy. If there are no guarantees for a young leader, respect for human rights and basic freedoms are being eroded," he said.

"But in addition, if a sector of society violates this basic tenet by attacking institutions through the burning of the iconic building of popular representation, this does not justify in any way the invasion of a political headquarters, indiscriminate repression, and the killing of a young political leader," he added.

For these reasons, the Secretary General strongly condemned the attack on the institutions that involved the burning down of the congress building on the one hand, as well as the absolutely excessive repressive actions of government forces that invaded the offices of a political party.

Reference: E-020/17