FRANCISCO JUAN LARRAÑAGA (PACO) - THE PHILIPPINES

Last updated: 21 July 2011

United Nations condemn conviction

In 1999 Paco, a dual national of Spain and the Phillipines, was convicted of the kidnap, rape and murder of two young women in Cebu City despite fourteen witnesses testifying that he was on a different island, 500km away, when the crimes were committed. Paco was sentenced to death in 2004, later commuted to life imprisonment.

Fair Trials International has been working on Paco’s case since 2004, helping to take the case to the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC). In 2006 the UNHRC concluded that Paco’s trial had violated the most fundamental fair trial standards including the right to be presumed innocent, the right to effective defence counsel, equality of arms and the right to have your case heard before an independent court. The UNHRC’s findings were ignored and Paco remained in prison. In October 2009, he was transferred from the Philippines to Spain under a prison transfer agreement. 

"Since Paco is now in Spain, he is their responsibility. The UNHRC recommended that Paco’s death sentence be commuted and he be given early parole. Although his death sentence was commuted, he still remains in prison. Spain must do something.” Faisal Saifee, Paco’s UK lawyer 

Give Up Tomorrow, a feature documentary, traces Paco’s story. Please see the trailer below. It premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2011 and won the Heineken Audience Award. The documentary, six years in the making, was directed by Michael Collins and produced by Marty Syjuco. The documentary features the work of Fair Trials International.