by Jennifer Johnson and Ben Leiter
on November 23, 2010
This past August, the horrific massacre of 72 Central and South American migrants in northern Mexico brought to the world’s attention the daily violence and exploitation suffered by migrants on their way to the United States. There is no question: migrants in their journey to jobs and loved ones in el norte confront unimaginable dangers and abuses, as chronicled in the recently released documentary The Invisibles.
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by Jennifer Johnson and Vanessa Kritzer
on September 01, 2010
Persistence, local organizing, effective advocacy and international pressure have ultimately won out in bringing justice to Raúl Hernández Abundio, an indigenous rights defender from Guerrero, Mexico who was targeted by authorities and unjustly imprisoned. Since we wrote about his case in July, international and local human rights groups have been working tirelessly to clear his name of the murder charges for his exposure of abuses committed by soldiers and local authorities.
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by Jennifer Johnson and Ben Leiter
on October 05, 2010
It isn’t news that journalists around the world risk their safety and security everyday to cover the stories that keep us informed and hold the powers that be accountable, but many people are surprised to learn that neighboring Mexico is an increasingly hostile environment for reporters. Press freedom watchdog International Press Institute (IPI) recently ranked Mexico as the most dangerous country for journalists and media personnel in the world so far this year.
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by Jennifer Johnson and Vanessa Kritzer
on July 19, 2010
In their work to promote and defend indigenous peoples’ rights in the Costa Chica region of Mexico, a highly militarized zone in the state of Guerrero, members of the Me’phaa Indigenous People’s Organization (OPIM) and their partner organizations have had to overcome repeated harassment, threats, and even murders of leading members. Now add imprisonments and baseless prosecutions by the government to that list.
In April 2008, Raúl Hernández and four fellow OPIM members were arbitrarily arrested and charged with the murder of a suspected army informant—a murder which Mr. Hernández did not commit. The other four human rights defenders were released due to lack of evidence. But even though the only witness that directly identified Mr. Hernández as having taken part in the murder was found to have lied, he has remained in prison for over two years.
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by Jennifer Johnson
on September 18, 2010
They did it again. Despite the fact that not a single soldier responsible for human rights violations has been held accountable by civilian authorities in the years since the onset of the Merida Initiative, the State Department released its second report on September 2nd affirming that the Mexican government has met the Merida Initiative’s human rights requirements. This report not only recommends the release of roughly $36 million in Merida funds that had been previously withheld from the 2009 and 2010 budgets, but also sends the wrong message to Mexico on human rights.
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by Lisa Haugaard & Jenny Johnson
on June 27, 2010
We’ve seen up close how the production and trafficking of illicit drugs has fueled a war in Colombia, corrupted governments in Central America and brought terrifying violence to Mexican communities. We know about the devastating effects of drug abuse in our own neighborhoods in the United States. What has become clear is that solutions the U.S. government has pursued, such as the massive aerial spraying campaign in Colombia which destroys food as well as illicit drug crops or aid that encourages the Mexican army to police the streets and checkpoints do not solve the problem. Instead, it leads to more devastation and violence.
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