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[source: NativeNews; Sun, 20 Feb 2000 17:46:12]

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---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Sat, 19 Feb 2000 18:10:39 -0800
From: Commandante Null <npcia@mindspring.com>
Reply-To: chiapas-l@burn.ucsd.edu
To: Multiple recipients of list <chiapas-l@burn.ucsd.edu>
Subject: U.N. Report Denounces Rights Abuses in Mexico

U.N. Report Denounces Rights Abuses in Mexico

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Human rights violations involving Mexican police,
soldiers and government officials plague most of Mexico, a U.N. special
rapporteur said in a report released Friday.

"The incidence of violence and killings remains widespread, although there
has been a discernible decrease in the last year," Asma Jahangir, U.N.
special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, said
in her report.

"Urgent preventive steps need to be taken ... to protect the security and
lives of innocent civilians who suffer at the hands of the police, the
armed forces, the paramilitary and armed opposition groups."

Spokespeople for Mexico's Foreign Ministry and the Attorney General's
Office had no immediate comment on Friday.

During her July visit to Mexico, Jahangir visited the southern states of
Chiapas and Guerrero, in which several highly publicized massacres took
place between 1995 and 1998, including one perpetrated by the army and one
by police. Leftist guerrilla groups operate in both states.

Jahangir noted that the problem of human rights violations and summary
executions is not limited to Mexico's traditionally violent
  southern states.

  "While the problem of extrajudicial killings and impunity may be more
prevalent in Guerrero and Chiapas, it does seem to exist i almost every
part of the country," she said.

Jahangir also visited the northern border city of Ciudad Juarez, where
scores of young women have been murdered in recent years, frequently after
having been raped and mutilated. Authorities never fully investigated most
of the cases.

Jahangir called the Ciudad Juarez murders "a typical case of gender-based
crimes which thrive on impunity."

"The arrogant behavior and obvious indifference shown by some state
officials in regard to these cases leave the impression that many of the
crimes were deliberately never investigated," she said.

IMPUNITY REMAINS

Jahangir cast doubt on the Mexican government's determination to curb human
rights abuses, noting that some officials "were still content with
rhetoric, blaming lack of progress on the legacy of the political culture
of the past."

In spite of the government's assurances, "extrajudicial killings and the
impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators continue," she said.

In many cases, Jahangir said, federal authorities have been unwilling to
investigate human rights abuses, claiming they were obligated to respect
the jurisdiction of state authorities.

"The federal government cannot hide behind "federalism" ... in order to
extend impunity to influential persons," she said.

Jahangir said the government has a legal responsibility to make sure that
international treaties and standards are applied, even when the laws of
Mexico put state or regional authorities in charge of protecting human rights.

Some human rights violations involved police and military forces that "have
reportedly at times involved excessive or indiscriminate use of force, and
have on occasion claimed the lives of innocent civilians," Jahangir said.
 

She also expressed concern that the Mexican government, faced with
increased criminality, guerrilla activity and drug-smuggling, has resorted
to drastic measures in recent years.

"Some of the measures, especially the assignment of army personnel to law
enforcement duties, may work to the detriment of the overall rule of law
and the enjoyment of human rights in Mexico," she said.

Although the army is involved in civilian law enforcement, "independent
complainants may not initiate criminal proceedings against a member of the
armed forces," who can only be prosecuted by the Defense Ministry, she said.

Copyright 1999 Reuters.All rights reserved
 
 

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