The Constitutional Court (CC) ratified a 2018 ruling and granted definitive protection to Irina and Anastasia Bitkov, considering that as migrants, they are vulnerable people. The CC gave the Supreme Court of Justice 15 days to issue a ruling in which it considers the exemptions from criminal liability that protect migrants when they use documents to travel or reside in other countries, explains lawyer Rolando Alvarado, who together with Victoria Sandoval received the 2018 Magnitsky Award for their work in this case.

Roxana Orantes Cordova

For nearly 10 years, Rolando Alvarado was part of the team that defended the Bitkov family. In 2018, Sandoval and Alvarado denounced multiple violations and irregularities in the Bitkov case before the Helsinki Commission. The International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) did not attend that hearing.

Also in 2018, the CC headed by Gloria Porras granted a provisional protection to Irina and Anastasia, based on the fact that the Palermo Convention and the Migration Law define migrants as vulnerable persons and exempt them from criminal liability for the use of identification and travel documents issued in an anomalous manner.

Today, it was learned that the CC chaired by Néster Vásquez was consistent with the 2018 ruling, when Gloria Porras was the rapporteur . In addition, the constitutional court gave a 15-day period for the CSJ to obey and analyze the exemptions from criminal liability contained in the convention and the law mentioned above, since in its ruling of February 22, 2023, the CSJ did not take into account these regulations to base its decision.

The CC’s recommendation is to issue a new ruling in accordance with the law, analyzing the instruments that protect migrants, since both Irina and Anastasia Bitkov are migrants, Alvarado concludes.

source: https://247prensadigital.com/24-7/caso-bitkov-se-acerca-el-final-de-una-pesadilla-larga/