Impunity Watch: North America

Mexican Government Falling Short on Obligations Under the International Treaty Against Human Trafficking

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

 

(Photo Courtesy of The Rule of Law Initiative)

MEXICO CITY, Mexico - A report released this week finds that although the Mexican government has worked to bring its law into compliance with the International Treaty Against Human Trafficking, Mexico has done little to prosecute and punish human traffickers.  

The report, called the Human Trafficking Assessment Tool for Mexico, was written by the American Bar Association's Rule of Law Project. The report was the product of 78 interviews with experts and government officials between January and June of 2008. The report cited the lack of convictions and existence of legal inconsistencies, such as limiting the definition of "trafficking victim" to passive subjects of the crime that cooperate with criminal proceedings, as most problematic. 

The Mexican Law to Prevent and Penalize Trafficking in Persons went into effect in February 2009. It provides both domestic and international jurisdiction over trafficked persons, which is classified as a felony. Similarly, as of May 2009,  twenty-two Mexican states and its federal district had enacted legislation to criminalize some forms of human trafficking on the local level.  

The federal government has opened twenty-four criminal investigations against suspected human traffickers. However, there have been no convictions or punishments and the government has not completed renovations of a new trafficking shelter. The government has continued to refer victims to NGOs for assistance. The UNHCR has stated that in light of the large number of victims present in the country, the lack of a stronger response by the government is "of concern".

The UNHCR reports that groups most vulnerable to human trafficking in Mexico are women and children, Indigenous persons, and undocumented migrants. A substantial number of Mexican women, girls, and boys are trafficked within the country for commercial sexual exploitation. They are lured by false job offers from poor rural regions to urban, border, and tourist areas.  

For more information, please see:

IPS - RIGHTS - MEXICO : Slow Progress Against Human Trafficking - 27 August 2009

ABA Rule of Law Initiative - ABA ROLI Publishes Human Trafficking Tool Assessment for Mexico - August 2009

Refworld - Trafficking in Persons Report 2009 - Mexico - 16 June 2009

Inequity in Guatemala Leads to Food Crisis

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

JOCOTAN, Guatemala - According to UNICEF, almost half of Guatemala's children are malnourished, with that number reaching eighty percent in largely Indigenous, rural populations. Guatemala has the sixth worst rate of chronic malnourishment in the world. The food crisis is attributed to higher food prices, a twelve percent fall in remittances from family members in the United States and a severe drought in Eastern Guatemala. 

The government and aid donors estimate that the 300,000 people that food aid reaches represent less than half of the people in actual need of food. The incidence of "stunting", a non-genetic and key indicator of malnourishment, is twice as common in Guatemala as it is in Haiti, despite the fact that Haitians make on average, a quarter of the income that a Guatemalan makes. Mayan populations in Southern Mexico are actually taller than Mayans in Guatemala, as a result of "stunting". Aid groups say that Guatemalan children eat tortillas and pasta, rather than eggs and beans. This leads to malnutrition, most evident in "stunting" rather than emaciation. 

Responsibility for the food crisis has been traced to the ineffectiveness of the Guatemalan government.  The Guatemalan GDP is not overwhelmingly low, though inequality is extremely high. Socioeconomic indicators show that the Indigenous populations in Guatemala that have been historically oppressed, remain victims of extreme inequities. Guatemala is the second to last country on a new index, published by the World Bank, measuring inequality of opportunity in Latin America. 

Aid groups also point out that government programs target aid towards feeding stunted infants, rather than trying to address the extreme disparity that leads to malnutrition. The top ten percent of Guatemalans control fifty percent of the country's wealth. A 2007 Report Compiled by USAID stated that it will take eighty-three years for Guatemala to solve the stunting problem with its current rate of progress.

Some have argued that the United States has a responsibility to help Guatemala because it supported the 1957 overthrow of Guatemala's democratically elected government to aid The United Fruit Company. The civil war that followed lasted thirty years and involved the "disappearance" of over 200,000 people. Rural Guatemala has never completely recovered. However, Guatemala most likely does not qualify for the United States current development program due to corruption and lack of government work on behalf of the poor. 

"These people were totally abandoned in the mountains with no infrastructure, no education, no health," says the vice-president of Guatemala.

For more information, please see:

The Economist - Malnutrition in Guatemala: A National Shame - 27 August 2009

The Atlantic - Hungry in Guatemala - 26 August 2009

Costa Rica Daily - Guatemala on Malnutrition-Famine Alert - 19 August 2009

Federal Investigation of CIA Interrogation Methods Ordered After Report is Released Detailing Abuses

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

(Photo Courtesy of The Economist)

WASHINGTON D.C., United States - U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has ordered Federal Prosecutor, John Durham to investigate the C.I.A.'s interrogation of suspected terrorists to determine if any illegal interrogation techniques occurred. Durham's mandate was expanded beyond investigating the C.I.A. destruction of interrogation tapes after Holder examined reports from the Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility and other documents, including classified versions of the 2004 C.I.A. inspector general's report into questionable interrogation techniques.  

Holder stated that his analysis required a "preliminary review into whether federal laws were violated in connection with the interrogation of specific detainees at overseas locations." Holder clarified that the "controversial" investigation would not lead to the prosecution of C.I.A. personnel who "acted in good faith and within the scope of legal guidance given by" Bush administration lawyers.

In the wake of the investigation and allegations of C.I.A. use of waterboarding and transfer of detainees to countries where torture is common, Obama has approved the establishment of a special FBI unit of terrorist interrogators. The shift from the C.I.A. to the F.B.I. is the product of an interrogation task force, which Obama set up in early January and is thought to signal a shift in U.S. National Security Policy. The new group will make sure that all interrogations comply with interrogation standards in the U.S. Army Field Manual.

The report on interrogations by the C.I.A. Inspector General, released on Monday, points out multiple unauthorized detainee detention methods. U.S. interrogators reportedly threatened to kill the family and children of detainees, used stress positions and applied pressure to detainees carotid artery until the prisoner passed out before being shaken back awake. 

The C.I.A. also made use of mock executions, which have been banned by the U.N. Convention Against Torture. Detainees were reportedly made to believe that another terror suspect was being executed in an adjacent room through the use of gun fire and hooded agents posing as dead detainees. A federal judge has ordered a redacted version of the report to be released as part of a lawsuit filed by the ACLU.

Former Vice-President Cheney and others are warning that opening investigations into incidents outlined by the C.I.A. report will destroy morale at the agency and discourage staff from aggressive intelligence work on terror cases. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell referred to the investigation as a "poor and misguided decision."  

Conversely, several Democrats and representatives from Amnesty International and the ACLU said that the investigation is a beginning, but does not investigate the actions of officials who sanctioned the brutal interrogation system. The director of the ACLU's national security project, said that "any investigation that begins and ends with the so-called rogue interrogators would be completely inadequate given the evidence that's already in the public domain. We know that senior officials authorized torture and we know that DOJ lawyers facilitated torture."

Durham will be charged with deciding whether or not the current investigation turns up enough evidence to warrant a full scale criminal investigation. The text of the recently released redacted report on C.I.A. interrogation methods is available here.

For more information, please see:

AP- Interrogation Probe Steams Those on Right and Left - 25 August 2009

New York Times - Report Shows Tight C.I.A. Control on Interrogations - 25 August 2009

CNN - Top Prosecutor Orders Probe into Interrogations; Obama Shifts Onus - 24 August 2009

Los Angeles Times - Report Invites Questions of Legality of CIA Actions - 23 August 2009

OAS Commission Confirms Human Rights Violations Following Honduras Coup

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

The Commission verified that "the rupture of constitutional order caused by the coup has been accompanied by a heavy military presence in different spheres of civilian life, the suspension of guarantees through the implementation of a curfew that does not meet the standards of the Inter-American System, and the ineffectiveness of judicial bodies in safeguarding the essential rights of people." (Photo Courtesy of Havana Times)

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - After receiving hundreds of complaints, the delegation sent to Honduras for a five day investigation by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has confirmed that coup leaders violated human rights.  The Organization of American States sent the delegation and suspended Honduras' membership following the coup.  

The commission traveled across Honduras, hearing testimony and allegations.  It has  "confirmed the existence of a pattern of disproportionate use of force, arbitrary detentions and the control of information to limit the political participation of a sector of the public", according to commission President, Luz Mejia Guerrero.  Furthermore, the commission is concerned about the presence of the military in police operations.  The commission claimed to have information that "could link" authorities to four deaths.  

The OAS is actively seeking Zelaya's reinstatement and will be sending seven foreign ministers to Honduras in pursuit of a compromise that would restore Zelaya to office. Zelaya has accepted this proposal, but the interim government insists that it will not reinstate him. Millions of dollars of U.S. aid and the threat of sanctions have not changed the intransigent stance of the interim government, which intends to hold out until a November presidential election.

Amnesty International reported on Wednesday that it has evidence of mass arrests and arbitrary violence against Honduran protesters by the authorities, since the June 28 coup.  Amnesty researcher Esther Major stated that "mass arbitrary arrests and ill treatment of protesters are a serious and growing concern in Honduras."

The interim government reported that it intends to defend itself against these allegations following the final report, which is set to be published in two months.  As an autonomous body of the OAS, the commission's mandate comes form the Inter-American Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The commission said that "only a return to institutional democracy" will lead to recognition of individual rights in Honduras.

For more information, please see:

AFP - Commission Confirms Rights Violations in Honduras - 21 August 2009

AP - Rights Commission Finds Abuses in Honduras - 22 August 2009

Havana Times - Honduras Human Rights Evaluated - 23 August 2009

Salvadoran Journalists Request Official Protection Due to Threats Following Coverage of Slain Activist

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

Oscar Luna, from the Defense of Human Rights in El Salvador speaks to the media about his request for official protection for the threatened journalists. (Photo Courtesy of DiarioCoLatino)

CABAÑAS, El Salvador - The public attorney for the Defense of Human Rights in El Salvador has requested protection for three journalists who have received telephone and letter death threats.  The journalists work for Radio Victoria, a community station that informs the public of Cabañas about an organized movement in resistance to mining operations run by the Canadian company, Pacific Rim.

The journalists claim that the death threats are related to Radio Victoria's coverage of the disappearance and death of a well known environmentalist and social activist, Marcelo Gustavo Rivera.  The threats made direct reference to Rivera's murder and stated that the reporters were "next on the list."

Radio Victoria is a community radio station that frequently covers environmental and political activists. (Photo Courtesy of democracyinaction.org)

Marcelo Gustavo Rivera was extremely active in Cabañas environmental issues and  politics.  He led a denunciation of electoral fraud that led to a suspension of elections in San Isidro, Cabañas. Rivera's body was found in a well, with clear evidence of torture.  Leading up to his disappearance, Rivera was the victim of an attempted bombing, death threats and a smear campaign.  Rivera's family has expressed dissatisfaction with the Prosecutor's work on the case, saying that he has not linked the earlier harassment to the murder.

  

Community members and social organizations are demanding an investigation of the threats made to the Radio Victoria reporters by "competent authorities" of the new government of the province. They are also demanding an investigation into the motive behind Rivera's murder.

Anti-mining activists, Marcelo Gustavo Rivera, pictured above, was tortured and murdered.  (Photo Courtesy of DiarioCoLatino )

For more information, please see:

DiarioCo Latino - Periodistas Denuncian Amenazas a Muerte - 27 July 2009

IFEX - Three Journalists Receive Death Threats in El Salvador - 31 July 2009

Upside Down Radio - El Salvador: Community Radio Journalist Receive Death Threats - 31 July 2009

Journalism in the America's - El Salvador's Human Rights Office Wants Protection for Threatened Journalists - 28 July 2009

Post Coup Violence Against Journalists Escalates in Honduras

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

Photo Courtesy of Daily Kos

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - Violence against the press in Honduras has increased since the June 28 coup, including physical attacks on journalists, vandalism of media headquarters, and threats.  Reporters without borders condemned attacks on journalists in Honduras, saying that "the de facto government has again illustrated its concept of press freedom by pitting soldiers and police against news media that are critical of the coup."  

        Photo Courtesy of Reuters

On August 12th police and military officers attacked journalists and camera operators as they covered a protest against the coup d'etat.  One reporter was filming the protest when a commando unit and military officers hit his leg with a baton and struck his video camera.  Another journalist reported that a high-ranking police officer threatened her and warned her not to publish anything.  Venezuelan reporters and video journalists from the Associated Press were detained in July, when the ruling government also reportedly blocked television broadcast signals.  

Other journalists state that they were threatened by protesters after a riot.  Protesters are also thought to be responsible for molotov cocktails being thrown into the offices of a publication which has supported the coup.  Reporters Without Borders urged protesters to avoid targeting the military, but referred to the incidents as the ruling Honduran government, "reaping what it sowed" after oppressing members of the press.  Protesters writing graffiti on the walls that reportedly said, "while the media is silent, the walls continue talking."

More recently, information sent by various media personnel report that the Honduran military detained and destroyed camera material of journalists. Julio Amaña was among those detained. According to the Honduran publication El Tiempo, he identified himself as a reporter for TIME.  Footage from his arrest was missing from the camera when it was returned upon his release. Other reporters were reportedly beaten. The ruling government insists that the detentions are necessary for "security measures". 

Meanwhile, an Organization of American States observation team arrived in Honduras on Monday to work on a report regarding the human rights situation there.   Human Rights Watch expressed concern over the ruling government's censorship of the media and urged the OAS mission to press for rights protections.

For more information, please see:

U.S. Senate Rejects State Department Attempt to Issue a Positive Report on Mexico's Human Rights Record

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

(Photo Courtesy of BBC)

WASHINGTON D.C. , United States - U.S. Senate members disagree about whether to award Mexico aid for combating drug cartels, in light of human rights abuses; meanwhile Barack Obama and Stephen Harper defend Mexico's army crackdown.  

Congress has the power to withhold a portion of the $1.4 billion aid package until the State Department can confirm that Mexico is not violating human rights while prosecuting the drug war.  U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Foreign Operations subcommitee has delayed the release of $100 million in aid, stating that Mexico needs an effective police force and a justice system that works.

The State Department had intended to send a favorable report on Mexico's human rights record to the Senate before President Obama went to Mexico to meet with President Calderon.  However, that plan was scrapped after aides to Senator Leahy told the State Department that the official finding contradicted reports of human rights violations coming out of Mexico, including torture and forced disappearances, all related to the drug war.  Leahy called the report "premature" in an official statement.

An anonymous U.S. official said that the State Department is looking for Mexico to be as transparent as possible. Mexican officials disclosed details of cases in which they claimed soldiers had been tried on charges of human rights violations after the State Department report was finished.  The State Department is still trying to verify the validity of those disclosures and decide whether to include them in the ultimate report.

President Obama, Prime Minister Harper, and President Calderon met for talks in Mexico last week. Obama stated that "the biggest by far violators of human rights right now are the cartels themselves that are kidnapping people, extorting people and encouraging corruption."  Obama stressed that he felt that "human rights will be observed" under President Calderon.  

Complaints of human rights violations committed by the Mexican military have increased 600 percent under President Calderon's military offensive.  Human Rights Watch says that the prosecution of soldiers is too lenient because it takes place in military courts.  

(Photo Courtesy of Times Online)

For more information, please see:

AP - U.S. Ambassador Cites Mexico's Progress on Rights - 12 August 2009

BBC - Mexico's "Courage" on Drugs Praised - 10 August 2009

Rueters - Drug Gangs Are Mexico's Worst Rights Problem - Obama - 10 August 2009

Washington Post - Leahy Blocks Positive Report on Mexico's Rights Record - 5 August 2009

"Canada Cannot Avoid Responsibility for its Participation in the Process at Guantánamo Bay", Says Appeals Court

By Sovereign Hager 

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

(Photo Courtesy of Globe and Mail)

OTTAWA, Canada - In a 2-1 judgment this Friday the Canadian Federal Court of Appeal upheld a lower court judgment ordering that the Canadian government repatriate Guantanamo Detainee Omar Khadr. The Canadian government had appealed the lower court ruling that the Canadian government had violated Khadr's rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms when they assisted the US Government despite knowledge that Khadr had been subjected to torture.

Specifically, the appeals court held that the treatment of Khadr by U.S. troops, who worked with Canadian government approval, violated Section 7 of the Charter and numerous Canadian and international human rights laws and conventions. The Court stated that "Canada cannot avoid responsibility for its participation in the process at Guantánamo Bay prison by relying on the fact the Mr. Khadr was mistreated by officials of the United States, because Canadian officials knew of the abuse when they conducted interviews, and sought to take advantage of it."

The Canadian government indicated that an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada might be sought.  The Canadian government maintains that due to the seriousness of Khadr's charges, he should be tried by a U.S. military court. However, the appeals court ruled that the Canadian government should take steps to "protect Khadr from further abuse."  The refusal to repatriate Khadr also amount to a Charter abuse, according to the appeals court.

The dissenting opinion in the case, by Justice Marc Nadon, said that the lower court conducted a "direct interference into Canada's conduct of its foreign affairs."  He felt that repatriation of Khadr was a matter "best left to the executive."

Khadr, was 16 at the time of his interrogation at Guantánamo.  Documents show that he was threatened with rape, deprived of sleep, and kept isolated during his interrogation by U.S. soldiers. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service traveled to Guantánamo in 2003 to question Khadr and shared the results of their interrogation with U.S. officials. An independent agency found that the CSIS ignored concerns about Khadr's age and treatment when they conducted their interview.

It is unclear if Khadr will be repatriated to Canada and how the decision will impact his situation.  Khadr has been held in Guantánamo since 2002.

For more information, please see:

CBC News - Ottawa Must Press for Jihad's Return: Appeal's Court - 14 August 2009

The Canadian Press - Khadr's Fate Unclear Despite Ruling to Bring Him Home - 14 August 2009

The Jurist - Canada Court Affirms Order Mandating Khadr Repatriation Efforts - 14 August 2009

Mexico's Supreme Court Allows Use of Military Jurisdiction to Try Military Crimes Against Civilians

By Sovereign Hager

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

The Mexican Supreme Court, pictured above, ruled that an individual has standing to appeal the denial of civilian jurisdiction in the case of human rights violations only when there is no prosecution of the crimes at all.  (Photo Courtesy of AP)

MEXICO CITY, Mexico - In a split decision, the Mexican Supreme Court dismissed an appeal challenging the use of military courts to try soldiers charged with crimes against civilians.  The appeal was brought by a woman whose husband was murdered by a soldier in the state of Sinaloa in 2008 on the grounds that she lacked legal standing to file the appeal.

The woman claimed that the use of military jurisdiction in this case violated her constitutional rights.  The ruling holds that crime victims have a right to appeal only when the crimes are not being prosecuted at all.  

The case in question involved an extrajudicial execution of four civilians in Santiago de Caballeros in Sinaloa by a military convoy.  Following the event, the Federal Attorney General's Office declined competence to investigate the claim against the military. As a result, the Department of Defense took up the investigation, making the prosecution, judge, and defendant all military authorities.  To date, four soldiers have been charged in military tribunals in relation to shootings of civilians. However, rights groups point out that complaints of human rights violations have increased two-fold. 

Article 13 of the Mexican Constitution establishes that "military jurisdiction subsists for crimes and offenses against military discipline."  The Mexican Military defines "military discipline" broadly to include crimes committed by military personnel against civilians.

The Supreme Court decision coincides with a shift in Mexican politics following a recent election and the role of the military in the drug war will be an important part of legislative debate.  The individuals in this case have no other domestic recourse to challenge the use of military jurisdiction and may now turn to international remedies. 

For more information, please see:

AP - In Mexico: Challenge of Military Courts Fails - 11 August 2009

Centroprodh - Mexico's Supreme Court Refuses to Analyze Merits of Military Jurisdiction Case - 10 August 2009

Stratfor: Global Intelligence - The Role of the Mexican Military in the Cartel War - 29 July 2009

Honduran Junta Commits "Grave Violations of Human Rights"

By Sovereign Hager

 Impunity Watch Reporter, North American 

Soldiers arrest a supporter of Jose Manuel Zelaya.  (Photo Courtesy of Mail&Guardian Online)

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - A 15 member Independent International Human Rights Commission comprised of officials from various human rights organizations from over 13 countries, has identified the existence of "grave violations of human rights" in Honduras since the coup d' etat on June 28.  The mission said in its report that the abuses signaled a "clear context of political persecution that especially affects political union leaders. human rights defenders, social activists, journalists, foreign citizens, and others."

Specifically, the mission found evidence of "a significant number" of extra judicial executions, hundreds of arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, threats, curtailment of freedom of expression and information, and undue restrictions on the freedom of movement in general.  The mission also identified a lack of protection for numerous individuals as a result of the inadequate response from the institutions constitutionally responsible for monitoring human rights compliance in Honduras.  The mission noted that the functional obligations of the National Human Rights Commissioner, Mr. Ramón Custodio have not been property fulfilled.  

 

The report points out that some human rights control institutions are open accomplices to the de facto authorities committing human rights violations, and ignore their constitutional and legal functions. The group has recommended the reinstatement of PResident Jose Manuel Zelaya and of constitutional order.

In a different though related report on human rights in Honduras, The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders reported that the ruling junta has been violating human rights and stoking xenophobia against Nicaraguan migrants in Honduras.  Honduran security forces are reportedly, "detaining and deporting Nicaraguan citizens" because the junta has an expectation of war with Nicaragua, whose government strongly supported Zelaya.

The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights has decided to send an official delegation to Honduras from August 17-21 to investigate many of these alleged abuses.  The Commission stressed that the interim government is required to allow the visit because it is a signatory of the American Convention on Human Rights.  

The Organization of American States, which governs the commission has suspended Honduras since the coup.  The OAS is trying to reinstate ousted President Manuel Zelaya. 

For more information, please see:

Latin America Herald Tribune - Honduran Junta Slammed on Human Rights - 9 August 2009

AP - OAS Agrees to Send Delegation to Honduras -  6 August 2009

Cuban News Agency - Independent International Mission: Serious Human Rights Violations in Honduras - 6 August 2009

Upside Down World - Confirmed Systematic Human Rights Violations in Honduras Since Coup d'etat - 6 August 2009