The IRLS & McCain Institute Fellow in International Criminal Law and Human Rights Journalism, Pedro Pizano, published a piece in The New York Times (es) on Sept. 30, 2020 about how to think about Colombia’s ex president, who, at that point, had been placed under house arrest for allegedly “determining”, knowing, (or because he should have known) that his lawyer was allegedly bribing and threatening witnesses. The argument is that we cannot fall prey to fanaticism in politics or otherwise as when we dehumanize those who think differently, we start on the path to political violence. The Rule of Law, therefore, its legitimacy, and our trust in it, depends on holding even the most powerful accountable while protecting their–and everyone’s–right to due process. When there’s equality under the law, fair and convincing investigations and trials, and due process among others, violence and fanaticism are tempered if not stopped. Pedro published the piece with his friend Andrés M. Manosalva, who holds a J.D. from George Washington University Law School and is currently pursuing his M.F.A. in Creative Writing at North Carolina State University. You can read an English translation here.