何塞·魯本·薩莫拉 (José Rubén Zamora)：“我在監獄裡的兩年所產生的影響比我從事新聞工作 30 年所產生的影響還要大”

這名 68 歲的男子被指控洗錢和勒索，在監獄裡度過了 800 多天，直到 10 月 19 日出獄。

Guatemalan journalist Jose Ruben Zamora, who spent more than two years in prison on money laundering and blackmail charges before being released to house arrest, has accused the international community of turning a blind eye to corruption in the country.

危地馬拉記者何塞·魯本·薩莫拉因洗錢和敲詐勒索罪名入獄兩年多，隨後被釋放軟禁，他指責國際社會對該國的腐敗行為視而不見。

Zamora, 68, was arrested in June 2023 and sentenced to six years in prison for money laundering. The sentence was overturned and he is awaiting another trial.

68 歲的薩莫拉於 2023 年 6 月被捕，並因洗錢罪被判處六年監禁。該判決被推翻，他正在等待另一次審判。

He told AFP in an interview that Guatemala was a "klepto-narco dictatorship disguised as a democracy."

他在接受法新社採訪時表示，瓜地馬拉是個「偽裝成民主國家的竊盜毒品獨裁國家」。

"They wanted to see it as a country with democracy, elections, freedom," he said.

「他們希望將其視為一個民主、選舉、自由的國家，」他說。

"I had more impact in two years in prison than in 30 years of journalism, because we stripped away the mask of democracy," he added.

他補充說：“我在監獄裡兩年的影響力比我從事新聞工作 30 年的影響力還要大，因為我們摘掉了民主的面具。”

Zamora's arrest came amid a crackdown on anti-graft prosecutors and journalists by the government of President Alejandro Giammattei, who was accused by rights groups of overseeing the campaign.

薩莫拉被捕之際，總統亞歷杭德羅·賈馬泰 (Alejandro Giammattei) 政府正在鎮壓反腐敗檢察官和記者，人權組織指控賈馬泰負責監督這場運動。

"Ignorance is very dangerous and ignorance with power is extremely dangerous," Zamora said.

薩莫拉說：“無知是非常危險的，對權力的無知也是極其危險的。”

Giammattei was replaced by President Bernardo Arevalo, an underdog anti-corruption campaigner who overcame attempts by the political establishment to block his inauguration.

賈馬泰的繼任者是總統貝爾納多·阿雷瓦洛(Bernardo Arevalo)，他是一位處於劣勢的反腐敗活動家，克服了政治機構阻止他就職的企圖。

Zamora said that he never felt ashamed of being in prison.

薩莫拉說，他從不為入獄感到羞恥。

"I learned to live with humility, with patience, with faith. They didn't hurt me. I regret the time I missed seeing my children and my grandchildren and my wife, but I felt free inside," he said.

「我學會了謙卑、耐心和信念地生活。他們沒有傷害我。我很遺憾錯過了見到我的孩子、孫子和妻子的時光，但我內心感到自由，」他說。

"I didn't feel ashamed. I always felt proud."

“我並不感到羞恥。我一直感到自豪。”