Guatemala: Court's order to return José Rubén Zamora Marroquín back to prison condemned
Credit: Photos of José Rubén Zamora taken by Karla Olascoaga, President of PEN Guatemala, during our trial observation.
‘PEN International condemns José Rubén Zamora’s return to preventive detention after he was conditionally released last year. This measure reinforces the impunity and corruption that continue to dominate Guatemala’s judicial system and represents yet another blow to free expression, sending an intimidating message to journalists. The judicial system must respect the right to a fair trial and end the judicial harassment of reporters,’ said Ma Thida, Chair of the Writers in Prison Committee of PEN International.
Update - August 2025
On 8 August 2025, the Third Court of Appeals declared that it had lost documents from the case against José Rubén Zamora Marroquín. The file, under the custody of Magistrate Alejandro Prado, is part of the second criminal proceeding that currently keeps Zamora in detention. The file, which had been under the custody of the Chamber tasked with ruling on an appeal concerning his request for house arrest, was reportedly delivered to Prado, who denies receiving the missing documents and attributes responsibility to a court officer.
29 July 2025 marked third anniversary of the arbitrary detention of journalist José Rubén Zamora.
On 29 June 2025, the Supreme Court of Justice of Guatemala granted an injunction (amparo) filed by Zamora’ s defence against a ruling of a Court of Appeal ordering his pre-trial detention. However, this has not yet resulted in his release, as the Third Court of Appeals has yet to issue a ruling in response to the pending legal challenge.
12 March 2025 – PEN International strongly rejects the appeal court's decision to return journalist José Rubén Zamora Marroquín to preventive detention, as announced by Judge Erick García during a hearing on 10 March 2025. The decision reverses the substitute measure of house arrest that was granted to Zamora on 18 October 2024.
Zamora, founder of the newspaper elPeriódico, was granted conditional release after spending more than 800 days in preventive detention. However, the Third Court of Appeals overturned this measure and ordered his return to prison without substantial legal justification. According to public reports, Zamora Marroquín’s legal defence team has filed an appeal against this decision.
Furthermore, Judge Erick García, who presided over the case, stated that he disagreed with the court’s ruling, despite being compelled to enforce it. He also revealed that he had suffered intimidation and threats in connection with the Zamora Marroquín case. García had previously granted Zamora’s conditional release in October 2024.
The legal harassment and use of the criminal justice system against journalists, authors and writers in order to silence them violates the right to free expression of Guatemalan citizens.
For further details about Zamora’s persecution, click here.
PEN International calls on the Guatemalan authorities to:
End the criminal prosecution of José Rubén Zamora Marroquín.
Ensure that the Supreme Court of Justice urgently grants the injunction in favour of José Rubén Zamora, upholding the principle of presumption of innocence and his right to a fair trial.
Immediately end the misuse of the legal system as a means to silence journalists and others for their peaceful expression.
Note to Editors:
For more information, please contact Alicia Quiñones, Head of the Americas Region, at PEN International, email: alicia.quinones@pen-international.org
For media queries, please contact Sabrina Tucci, PEN International Communications and Campaigns Manager, Sabrina.Tucci@pen-international.org
