351: Investigating War Crimes and Fighting for Human Rights in Chiapas, Guatemala, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Iraq, Cambodia and Palestine with Etelle Higonnet

Episode Summary

Hear stories about standing up for human rights around the world and struggling for truth, accountability and justice. Etelle Higonnet joins Matt for a wine night from Copenhagen, and begins by talking about her role as a founding member of the Sustainable Wine Roundtable.  She then describes her family background, her experience moving around growing up, and how her passion for social justice developed.  Etelle talks about her college experience at Yale and what compelled her to move to Guatemala to work with refugees and displaced people.  She describes a scary encounter there with masked gunmen and her eventual publication a book on the U.S.-backed genocide in Guatemala.  Etelle then talks about spending time in Chiapas, Mexico, supporting a lawsuit brought by indigenous women, and attending a speech by Subcommandante Marcos, the spokesperson of the Zapatista movement. Next, she describes her experience working for Human Rights Watch and investigating crimes of sexual violence in the Ivory Coast after the 2007 civil war.  Etelle also talks about her time living in Iraq documenting testimonies from victims of political violence, her human rights work with Amnesty International in Sierra Leone, and her role in helping establish the Cambodian war crimes tribunal.  She reflects on the history and legacy of French colonialism, the need for post-colonial justice systems, and shares some human rights victories in Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone.  Finally, Etelle offers her insights, strategies, and encouragement to everyone working to stop the genocide in Palestine.

 

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Etelle Higonnet

Etelle Higonnet is an international human rights lawyer, environmental activist, and the founder of Coffee Watch, an NGO dedicated to combating human rights abuses and environmental destruction in the coffee industry.  She is also on the board of Climate Defiance, and previously served as Senior Advisor at the National Wildlife Federation, campaign director at Mighty Earth, and research manager at Greenpeace Southeast Asia.  Etelle has also conducted human rights research in West Africa on behalf of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, and in Iraq for the International Human Rights Law Institute. She has served as a consultant for UNICEF, Open Society, the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, the Royal Cambodian Government Task Force for the Extraordinary Chambers, and the Special Court for Sierra Leone. Raised mostly in France, Etelle got her bachelor’s and her law degree at Yale, and she is the editor of the book Quiet Genocide about the U.S.-backed genocide in Guatemala in the 1980s.  Etelle has traveled the world extensively, deeply immersing in many different cultures, and she speaks 8 languages.

What You'll Learn
  • What it’s like investigating war crimes around the world
  • The U.S. government’s role in the Guatemalan genocide and other human rights abuses in Latina America
  • Tips, encouragement and recommendations for stopping the genocide in Palestine today
Links From the Episode

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Time Stamped Show Notes

**Click the time stamp to jump directly to that point in the episode.

[0:53] Introducing Etelle Higonnet

[3:47] The Sustainable Wine Roundtable

[5:01] Growing up Around the World

[6:22] Developing Her Passion for Social Justice

[10:55] Student Activism at Yale

[13:11] U.S. Government Support for War Crimes in Central and South America

[17:32] Working with Refugees and Displaced People in Guatemala

[19:20] The Impact of Encountering Masked Gunmen

22:55: Publishing the Book “Quiet Genocide”


[28:22] Spending time in Chiapas, Mexico

[35:37] Investigating Crimes of Sexual Violence in the Ivory Coast after the 2007 Civil War

[39:22] Living in Iraq and Documenting Testimonies from Victims of Political Violence

[43:04] Working For Amnesty International in Sierra Leone

45:13: Helping to Establish the Cambodian War Crimes Tribunal

48:07: The Impact of the History and Legacy of French Colonialism


[52:30] The Need for Post Colonial Justice Systems

[57:10] Human Rights Victories in Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast

[1:00:10] Stopping the Genocide in Palestine

[1:08:30] How to Contact and Follow Etelle

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