The Security Without War collective that brings together Amnesty International; Article 19; Tlachinollan Center; cencos; Serapaz and Mexico United Against Crime, requested an audience with the president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to address the risk of activists, the militarization of public security and the latest report of the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances.
In an open letter to President López Obrador, members of the collective Security Without War They lamented that the president has stated that the members of the Committee “are not acting in accordance with the truth.” The foregoing, after the Committee’s group of experts visited Mexico and concluded that the situation of the disappeared in the country is “worrying”, that impunity is “almost absolute” and that the Mexican government must abandon the strategy of militarization of public safety.
“We regret your opinion that the Committee does not act in accordance with the truth, as well as your statement that it is no longer the time before when the army was used to repress or finish off wounded, when rights organizations human beings we have documented the involvement of the military, including the National Guard militarized, in cases of torture, repression, forced disappearance, extrajudicial executions, sexual violence among other human rights violations.
“Mr. President, the report issued by the Committee is a fact of great relevance for ordinary citizens who propose our daily work in order to achieve a country free of violence and demilitarized, where human rights are respected. of all and all. Without distinction. In this sense, we are writing to you to request a face-to-face meeting with representatives of our organizations in view of the current situation of high risk for the exercise and defense of human rights presented by the militarization of our country”, they indicated.
From November 15 to 26, 2021, experts from the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances They visited the country for the first time to corroborate adherence to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons against Enforced Disappearances, which was ratified by Mexico. The Committee is made up of independent human rights experts who act in their personal capacity and not as representatives of the States parties.
The Committee’s visit was an event of great importance, since it took 8 years of dialogue and negotiation between the Committee itself and the mexican state and the struggle of various civil society organizations, groups and relatives of disappeared persons so that the State would accept said visit.
In its report, the Committee held that the public security approach adopted by the mexican state three decades ago it has been focused on militarization to combat crime, and it has been insufficient and inadequate. He recommended that the federal government devise an “orderly, immediate and verifiable” withdrawal plan for the military forces that are carrying out public security actions, urging them to abandon the militarized approach.
The foregoing is in accordance with international human rights and constitutional standards on public security, which indicate that public security must be in the hands of civilians, and that only in an extraordinary, regulated, supervised, subordinated and complementary manner can the States resort to the armed forces for that task.
The colective security without war He said that “the regime of the military forces is not reconciled with the functions of civil authorities, which puts the validity of human rights at risk and is contrary to principles of the rule of law such as the separation of powers, independence and autonomy of courts. and subordination to civil authorities.
“Amnesty International and the organizations, activists, independent experts and academics that make up the Security Without War collective are convinced that public security policies must be in charge of civilian and not military institutions,” they established.
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