By Brenda Lopez Romero
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America desk
TIJUANA, Mexico – The first oral arguments in front of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) in Washington were heard for the torture allegations by the Military in Baja California. The families of the police and civilian detainees by the Military testified that they survived the pain and fear of torture. The survivors claimed that they were assaulted, given electric shocks, and warned that if they died their bodies would be throw randomly on the streets. They denounced the torture when they were in prison in Tepic, Nayarit. The victims claim that agents of the Secretary of Public Safety in Tijuana, Baja California participated “actively in acts of torture” of persons held under preventive detention.
Human rights organizations accompanied the families and presented elements and testimony before IACHR. The Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights documented several cases where the so called “war on organized crime” was lead to torture policy being used as a general rule not an exception.
The petitions filed included requests to implement safeguard procedure en Tepic and to establish a working committee in Tijuana with representatives from all the Government branches, human rights advocates, and survivors and their families to find a resolution for prevention, sanctions, and documentation of torture.
The petitioners included Mayra López Pineda who testified about twenty-five police officer detained for forty days that were tortured. The police officers were never informed why they were detained and claim were torture to sign a confession declaration while their eyes were covered. Luis Castellanos testified for his brother Ricardo Castellanos and alleged his brother was beaten, shocked, and asphyxiated. Blanca Mesina, daughter of a police officer, testified to the similar torture of her father.
Raúl Ramírez Bahena, director of IACHR stated: “We are not opposed to the presence of the military nor do we want to mire their work, but we are sure that they should not realize horrible actions such as torture, you cannot combat crime by committing crimes.” The Court is expected to announce its recommendation to the State authorities in December.
For more information, please see:
La Cronica – Denuncian ante CIDH torturas de familiares arraigados – 11 November 2009
EFE – Denuncian participación de funcionarios mexicanos en las torturas de detenidos – 5 November 2009
El Mexicano – Analizarán violación a derechos humanos – 31 October 2009
