Blog Posts

A lot has been happening in Washington in the weeks since we covered the Washington Post article that exposed the forced disappearances, torture and illegal raids being carried out by the Mexican military as a part of the “drug war” and the practical impunity for soldiers who use these tactics. Concerned members of Congress have started asking more questions, so LAWG has been working with partner groups in the United States and Mexico to provide some answers. On July 16th, we circulated a joint public statement calling for Congress to withhold a chunk of funds designated for Mexico under the Merida Initiative, which they can only release once they accept a report from the State Department that documents the Mexican government’s efforts to meet four key human rights requirements.

      “The Mexican army has carried out forced disappearances, acts of torture and illegal raids in pursuit of drug traffickers, according to documents and interviews with victims, their families, political leaders and human rights monitors.”

In a detailed exposé published on the front page of last Thursday’s Washington Post, reporters Steve Fainaru and William Booth draw on testimonies from victims, their family members, political officials and human rights monitors to illustrate some of the brutal tactics that the Mexican Army has employed in its efforts to combat drug related violence. Horrific and heartbreaking stories from rural and urban communities, including Puerto Las Ollas, Guerrero and Tijuana, Baja California, are representative of too many of the abuses that have occurred.

Deeply concerned after learning of an assassination attempt against human rights defenders in Guerrero, including Margarita Martín de las Nieves, the Latin America Working Group, Human Rights Watch, the Washington Office on Latin America and Due Process of Law Foundation issued a letter to Ambassador Juan Manuel Gómez Robledo, the Mexican Assistant Secretary for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights, urging state and federal authorities to take immediate action to ensure the safety of Margarita Martín de las Nieves and fully implement security measures necessary to make certain that human rights defenders in Guerrero can safely carry out their work without fear of reprisals.  These protective measures include those agreed to by the Mexican government within the context of proceedings before the Inter-American system of human rights.

In recent years, thousands of military-style rifles and other firearms have been purchased in the United States and trafficked over our southern border, ultimately ending up in the hands of Mexican drug trafficking organizations (DTOs). If the U.S. is to hold true to its promise of being a good neighbor, we know that bold moves must be made to effectively stem this illicit flow of U.S.-sourced firearms into Mexico.  Yet the question arises:  What steps need to be taken to achieve this?

Recent statements by congressional leaders and the Obama Administration indicate that Congress is poised to send hundreds of millions of additional dollars of counternarcotics assistance for Mexico, including helicopters, planes, and other hardware, as part of a supplemental appropriations bill.

Since 1994 the brutal murders of hundreds of women and girls in Ciudad Juárez and the city of Chihuahua in northern Mexico have been met with impunity.  Despite loud and persistent outcry from family members and human rights advocates across Mexico and around the world, authorities have consistently failed to adequately investigate, prosecute and prevent the murder and disappearances of countless women and girls.

In just two days, President Obama will embark on his first official trip to Latin America as he travels to Mexico following a string of visits from high-level U.S. officials in recent weeks.  Comments made by visiting U.S. officials mark a shift in the U.S. stance towards Mexico’s challenges with drug cartels - a shift that indicates the Obama Administration’s willingness to recognize U.S. responsibility for spiraling violence in Mexico.  This sentiment was clearly expressed by Secretary of State Clinton when she said, “Our insatiable demand for illegal drugs fuels the drug trade…Our inability to prevent weapons from being illegally smuggled across the border to arm these criminals causes the deaths of police officers, soldiers and civilians.”

Day after day we hear nightmarish stories of gangland slayings in Mexico, as drug-related violence expands, affecting the lives of countless families and communities across Mexico, as well as the U.S-Mexico border region. Mexico’s Attorney General estimates that rival drug cartels killed 6,262 people in 2008.

In the coming week, over 100 prayer vigils will be taking place in towns across the country – all calling for the new Administration and members of Congress to show moral courage and leadership in enacting humane immigration reform.