Mexico Charges Ex-President in '68 Massacre
Just two days before a tight national election, a judge has ordered the arrest of former President Luis Echeverría on genocide charges in connection with his role during the massacre of student protesters here in 1968, overturning a lower court ruling.
The arrest of Mr. Echeverría, who is 84 and in poor health, came after two failed attempts by a special prosecutor to charge him with the deaths and disappearances of dozens of students and leftist dissidents in the late 1960's and early 1970's, a period known here as the dirty war.
The ruling was a major victory for President Vicente Fox, who staked much of his political legacy on holding government officials legally responsible for past atrocities rather than forming a truth commission that had no legal teeth.
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The arrest of Mr. Echeverría, who is 84 and in poor health, came after two failed attempts by a special prosecutor to charge him with the deaths and disappearances of dozens of students and leftist dissidents in the late 1960's and early 1970's, a period known here as the dirty war.
The ruling was a major victory for President Vicente Fox, who staked much of his political legacy on holding government officials legally responsible for past atrocities rather than forming a truth commission that had no legal teeth.