In a colony, we are not only at the mercy of the economic power of the invading country, in our case the United States of America, but Justice, with a capital J, ultimately depends on imperial interests.
A recent example is the presidential pardon, that is, from President Trump, for the former governor of Puerto Rico, Wanda Vázquez Garced.
It’s a case that’s getting worse and worse. Let’s take a brief look.
Vázquez Garced succeeded Ricky Rosselló as governor, after the people ousted him from office in massive protests during the now-famous summer of 2019. This followed the release of a Telegram chat in which he cruelly mocked the people, especially given the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria. Ironically, Vázquez was the Secretary of Justice at the time.
While governor, she accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars from a bank president for her 2020 reelection campaign in exchange for favors for that banker. She was reelected and fulfilled the promises made to the banker in exchange for the bribe.
Without going into the complicated details, it is important to mention the names of two main actors who were accused by the United States Attorney’s Office in Puerto Rico along with Vázquez Garced.
One, the president of Bancrédito, Julio Herrera Velutini, a Venezuelan landowner who had opened that bank in Puerto Rico and wanted more freedom of action without oversight from Puerto Rican agencies.
The other is a former FBI agent, Mark Rossini, who acted as an intermediary between the governor and Velutini.
The three would have had to serve prison time for those crimes. But thanks to Herrera Velutini’s daughter donating $2.5 million to Trump’s organization, MAGA, Inc., in late 2024, Trump just granted them all a full presidential pardon.
Meanwhile, the Puerto Rican people will have to continue rallying to achieve justice. Something that only independence and sovereignty will bring.
From Puerto Rico in struggle, with Radio Clarín of Colombia, Berta Joubert-Ceci
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