Standing 40 meters long and 4.5 meters tall, the Cry for Memory mural was formally presented on Thursday as a form of reparation for victims of human rights abuses which have occurred in the history of Latin America and Ecuador.

The mural stands in front of the District Attorney's office, previously where the U.S. embassy was located, as a powerful reminder of the violations which have occurred, and a statement that impunity for perpetrators will no longer be tolerated.

The event was held in the Ecuador House of Culture as part of the International Day of Human Rights. At the event, the president of the House of Culture Raul Perez Torres told the audience, “This cry of Pavel Eguez says everything. It is the graffiti of the people who have painted our country.”

Painted by renowned Ecuadorean artist Pavel Eguez, Attorney General Galo Chiriboga unveiled the mural. At the ceremony, Chiriboga said that this mural represents the commitment of the authorities to work towards protecting the rights of individuals.

Chiriboga spoke of the commitment of President Rafael Correa's government since coming into power in 2007 to seek justice and reparation for victims.

Present at the event were President of the National Assembly Gabriela Rivadeneira, head of the Pichincha Provincial government Gustavo Baroja, mayor of Quito Mauricio Rodas, President of the Constitutional Court Patricio Pazmiño, Minister of Justice Ledy Zuñiga, and Secretary General of UNASUR Ernesto Samper, among other public figures.

The unveiling of the mural was attended by victims of human rights abuses committed in Ecuador, namely under the rule of Leon Febres Cordero, who was in power from 1984 to 1988. 

According to the Ecuadorean Commission of Truth and Human Rights, there are 456 registered victims of crimes against humanity, 68 percent of which occurred under the government of Leon Febres Cordero, who is depicted in the mural.

“It is the responsibility of governments and of the people to make a cry for memory, and it is a reason for happiness and pride that these public spaces are filled with these cries,” said President of the National Assembly Gabriela Rivadeneira.

Before beginning his work, Pavel Eguez traveled to various provinces of Ecuador to collect the stories of victims and incorporate them into the mural. Figuring in the mural are abuses that happened in the past as well as in the present, which include the disappearance of the 43 students in Mexico, the grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and the trial of Guatemalan dictator Rios Montt.

Natasha Reyes, the daughter of Milton Reyes, a student leader who was tortured and assassined in 1970 said, “Works like this remind us that human life is the most valuable thing to protect, and nothing justifies violence.”

She went on to say, “It is better to construct spaces of life than of violent death. This mural joins the human voices that do not want more torture and violations.”