Speeches
in the Signing of Agreements
Signing Ceremony for the Cooperation Agreement with the Ombudsman’s
Office
Acknowledgment Speech by CVR President
Having democracy and the rule of law definitively and genuinely
take root in our country is a task that demands deep patience
and generous selflessness. Patience because democracy is
not a product that can be pointed at or taken at a certain
moment to declare that the work has been finished. As we
know, democracy is above all a way of life and hence, it
is generated subtly and it is affirmed gradually in acts,
in values, in the way of thinking of each one of us. Those
who are committed to work on its behalf must, therefore,
remember that they have a permanent building task of their
own.
The Confirmation of Democracy demands from us selflessness
too, because democracy, a way of life, is fundamentally a collective
creation. The respect to its norms, the efficacy and justice
of the institutions, the set of values that support it and
give it sense, exist only in all those who participate in it,
acting as citizens, include such members, institutions and
values in their own daily activity. Nevertheless, as nobody
can attribute herself or himself the merit of having created
or consolidated democracy, it is also Truth that democracy
has not come up from a mysterious continuous generation, but
it requires the decided participation of certain institutions
and the moral commitment of those who temporarily direct hem.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has the illusion,
or even more, the conviction that complying with its mission
will mean a contribution to that enormous task. That contribution
will not be other than cleaning the ground of falseness and
guilty silence on our recent collective tragedy. By doing so,
we wish to consider restoring a central value without which
there is no possible rule of law: absolute respect to human
life and dignity.
This is an enormous task we cannot comply without the generosity
and selflessness of some institutions that have already gone
some way in this common purpose. The agreement we sign today,
is, this, a token of to the Ombudsman’s Office democratic
commitment. This office is an institution that thanks its rectitude
and independence, has become one of the pillars of our yearned
peaceful and democratic life.
The Ombudsman’s office has manifested from the start
its determination of contributing with the commission charged
to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Not surprisingly,
this mission of exposing truth and restoring justice, is precisely
the spirit that had encouraged the Ombudsman’s office
from the start.
This is how the Ombudsman’s office, as we know, has
already made some way, not only in terms of information collected
on human rights abuse, but also in what regards the design
of a method to deal with these serious affairs and in installing
nationwide coverage. This and other examples of progress are
those it generously offers to make available to the Truth Commission
through the agreement we now sign and that we consider fundamental
to the development of our activities.
The making of democratic life, as I said a few minutes ago,
is by definition a collective creation. It is also a work
that will be consolidated only through dialogue, agreement,
and
cooperation among those who feel concerned. The Truth and
Reconciliation Commission is convinced that this agreement
is possible, because
in our country there are people and institutions that are
capable of acting patiently and selflessly. The Ombudsman’s office
initiative that materializes in this agreement is an example
the Truth Commission members thank deeply.
Salomon Lerner Febres
President
Truth and Reconciliation Commission
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