THE U.N. COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE ACKNOWLEDGES THE PROGRESS MADE BY MEXICO

Mexico finished its explanation of the 5th and 6th consolidated report on implementation of the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment to the U.N. Committee that monitors compliance with the treaty on November 1st. Chilean expert Claudio Grossman, Committee Chair, expressed the committee’s appreciation for the detailed information, openness and discussion that was held with the Mexican delegation.

For two days, the ten members of the Committee against Torture asked many questions of Mexico related to the classification of the crime of torture at the national level; the Istanbul Protocol; the progress made in reforming the criminal justice system; the situation of migrants in the country; the writ of arraigo; the human rights of women and the prison system, among others.

The Mexican government provided detailed information to the committee, especially about how the transformation of the criminal justice system will affect the prevention of torture, now that the judges will hear oral arguments. It also explained the recent rulings of the Supreme Court on military jurisdiction; the status of the related legislative initiative in Congress and the Mexican president’s instruction to the armed forces to decline jurisdiction in favor of the civil courts in all cases of human rights violations. The committee was informed that there have been 231 of these cases.

The committee was also informed about the current state of the legislation on the prevention and punishment of torture, including the reforms recently passed by the Senate, the agreements reached at the National Law Enforcement Conference and the legislative progress made in Campeche and Mexico City, which were represented in the delegation. 

The Mexican delegation also explained how it had accepted and complied with the recommendations on torture made by the National Human Rights Commission to institutions such as the Ministries of Defense, Public Safety, the Navy and the Attorney General’s Office. It stressed that the recommendations had had a positive effect on training and improving the ways in which torture can be avoided.

Mexico’s delegation also stressed its readiness to study and implement, to the extent of its abilities, the recommendations made by the committee after this hearing. The committee is expected to issue its recommendations to the Mexican government next week.

Mexico has been party to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment since 1986. In 2002, it recognized the competence of the Committee against Torture to receive individual communications and, in 2005, it ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on visits to detention centers.

The Mexican government reiterates its commitment to promoting and defending human rights and firmly denies that there is a state policy to commit torture. Any complaint about torture is and will be investigated and, if applicable, sanctioned by the appropriate law enforcement authorities.