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August 02, 2005

Justice for Linda Loaiza

Imagine that you are 18. You have your whole life ahead of you. One day, you are kidnapped and held prisoner. Your captor rapes you repeatedly, beats you so badly that your skull is cracked, starves you, grinds out cigarettes on your face, cuts off your lower lip and a nipple, and slashes your genitals. You are held for four months, until the cops rescue you.

You'd get justice, right? No one would let someone like your assailant walk the street, right?

Apparently they would in Venezuela. Linda Loaiza has found this out the hard way.

In July of 2001, 18-year-old Linda Loaiza was rescued by the Caracas police in Luis Carrera Almoina's apartment. She had been repeatedly raped and brutally tortured for four months; she was found in a state of severe malnutrition, with her earlobes destroyed, a nipple cut out, cigarette burns all over her body, multiple cranial fractures, and bruises and cuts on her face and genital area. After undergoing nine operations, Linda is still recovering. The lifelong physical effects of her ordeal include cataracts, impaired hearing, reduced movement, facial scarring and an inability to bear children.

The accused perpetrator, Luis Carrera Almoina, had been previously arrested for torturing his then partner in 1999. He is the son of a Gustavo Carrera Damas, who at the time was president of a major university in Caracas. After being detained and put under house arrest, Carrera Almoina attempted to flee with the help of his father. He was captured the next day, and his father was later charged with obstructing judicial action.

The judges, all eager to protect a golfing buddy--or at the very least, a fellow upper-class man and his son--dragged their feet and refused to try the case. The case was deferred 29 times,and 59 judges declined to hear the case. The statute of limitations was coming up--and Carrera Almoina was in no danger of being prosecuted.

So Loaiza went on a hunger strike. On the steps of Venezuela's highest court.

So the finally tried the case. You'd figure either Almoina would be sent to prison or acquitted, and that would be the end of it, right?

Oh, no. Think again. No one in the court was interested in his trial.

In an attempt to exploit an outrageous piece of the Venezuelan Penal Code which calls for a reduced sentence for crimes against sex workers, Carrera Almoina's defense claimed that Loaiza was part of a prostitution ring. If sentenced to jail time, Carrera Almoina would have only have had to serve a fifth of the normal sentence. No evidence was presented in support of these claims, and Loaiza has consistently denied them. Nevertheless, on October 21, 2004, the judge acquitted Carrera Almoina and his father of all charges, citing a "lack of evidence”, and ordered an investigation of Loaiza, her father and sister for prostitution.

Because, you know, kidnapping, raping, mutilating, torturing, starving, and bludgeoning someone is A-OK if they're hookers. They don't have feelings 'cause they're not human. Or something like that. Besides, I'll bet all women lie, so making her and her family an example via witch-hunt is just part of due process.

Loaiza and her attorney immediately appealed the ruling. In a statement, Loaiza affirmed, "I'm determined not to give up and to keep fighting for justice. I think many women in Venezuela and in the whole world have been through similar experiences and keep their suffering in silence for fear of the torture they will have to once again undergo, this time in the hands of the judicial system.” The district attorney supported the appeal, and had already noted irregularities during the trial, including illegally submitted evidence by the defense.

The Venezuelan women's movement, including PLAFAM, IPPF/WHR's member association in Venezuela, mobilized to raise awareness of the case and to provide legal and emotional support to Linda Loaiza in her fight for a new trial. On April 12, 2005, the seventh court of appeals annulled the verdict and called for a new trial. PLAFAM continues to raise awareness in the media and in public forums so that the same delays and corrupt measures will not be employed again.

Go here to send a message to the Venezuelan Judiciary and demand justice for Linda Loaiza.

Further reading: Rape Acquittal Angers Venezuelans, the BBC.

Posted by at August 2, 2005 05:47 PM