GUATEMALA: Risk to lawyer and human rights defender Esteban Celada worsens
3 March 2026
The Observatory has learned with great concern that, since the intensification of harassment related to his professional work, Esteban Celada has been the subject of unauthorised photographs in court, intimidating messages, patrols outside meeting places and institutional harassment. In the Molina Theissen case, Mr Celada was falsely accused of kidnapping minors, a charge that was later dismissed. In 2023, one of the defendants directly threatened him by attempting to run him over. The alleged assailant was subsequently released.
In other trials, particularly those related to the so-called “Congress fire” case, he denounced judicial hostility, arbitrary expulsions from hearings, constant interruptions and illegal profiling by prosecutorial units, as well as digital attacks and smear campaigns carried out by actors such as the Foundation Against Terrorism.
The security situation was reportedly exacerbated by the intermittent and unjustified withdrawal of his official protection, even after he was knocked down on 8 February 2025 in San José Pinula (a date that would recur in incidents of intimidation linked to his brother’s murder). Complaints filed were reportedly systematically rejected and, since 2023, all requests for security measures were reportedly denied, forcing him to change his place of residence eight times and limit the cases he accepts, particularly those related to police violence, freedom of expression and criminalisation in contexts of high political conflict.
Added to this is structural discrimination, which manifests itself in differential treatment in the courts and homophobic threats. After spending time abroad in 2023 and returning in 2024, the harassment and intimidation reportedly intensified. Mr Celada continues to take on sensitive cases while awaiting a response to his individual communication and request for interim measures filed with the United Nations Human Rights Committee and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, respectively.
The Observatory reiterates its strong condemnation of the persistent harassment suffered by lawyer Esteban Celada, which hinders the exercise of his profession and puts his life in danger.
The Observatory recalls that, in accordance with the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, in particular Principles 16 and 17:
Principle 16: “Governments shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; (…).”
Principle 17: “Where the security of lawyers is threatened as a result of discharging their functions, they shall be adequately safeguarded by the authorities.”
GUATEMALA: The Lawyer Esteban Celada is at risk
Esteban Celada is a lawyer and human right defender; he has represented victims of serious human rights violations, especially victims of sexual violence by state agents, as well as ethnic peoples who during the civil war and on an ongoing basis have been victims of crimes against humanity.
Due to the exercise of this profession, Mr. Celada has been subject to monitoring, threats, stigmatization, illegal searches, as well as events that have occurred under strange circumstances, such as the murder of his brother on 7 February 2018, a few blocks from the family home, where the respective judicial authorities seized military material at the scene of the crime. Also, he has been victim of theft of sensitive information related to the judicial proceedings, including from the offices of the Prosecutor’s Office, where relevant pieces of evidence have disappeared without explanation.
Recently, on 22 April 2020, while Mr. Celada was away from his home, he was broken into and vandalized by unknown persons, who broke numerous windows and left signs of hatred in the apartment. This fact adds to two previous attempts to search the apartment, of which the lawyer had already been a victim, and all this would be part of a broader context of conflict in which a serious situation affecting the effective protection of human rights in the country can be appreciated.
Despite the risk situation of Mr. Celada, the competent authorities have not taken effective measures to protect and safeguard his integrity and to guarantee the continuity of his work as a human rights lawyer.
Similarly, despite the evidential evidence, the judicial investigations are in the preliminary stages, and so far there has been no investigation capable of identifying and prosecuting those responsible.
It should be noted that as a protective measure the State has assigned two men from the police force to patrol around his office. However, this measure does not meet the criteria of comprehensiveness, effectiveness and relevance, since the Celada lawyer, in the exercise of his profession, moves from one region to another to carry out judicial proceedings.
The OIAD notes with concern these operations of persecution against lawyer Esteban Celada, as well as the tragic events that occurred against his brother.
The OIAD draws attention to the United Nations Principles on the Role of Lawyers, and in particular Principles 16 and 17 which state:
“Governments shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; (b) are able to travel and to consult with their clients freely both within their own country and abroad; and (c) shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards and ethics”(Principle 16).
“Where the security of lawyers is threatened as a result of discharging their functions, they shall be adequately safeguarded by the authorities” (Principle 17).
The OIAD has requested the Government of Guatemala to adopt measures to guarantee the comprehensive protection of the Celada lawyer and to proceed to the public recognition of the work done in defense of the rights of women victims of sexual violence, of ethnic peoples and of victims of serious human rights violations.
