IACHR

Press Release

IACHR Observes Violence During the Electoral Process in Mexico

May 10, 2018

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Santo Domingo - The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), meeting at its 168th session in the Dominican Republic, observes a special situation of risk in the country that affects pre-candidates and candidates from different movements and political affiliations. In this regard, the Commission trusts the State will keep taking the necessary measures to guarantee the security in the context of the electoral process, as well as to carry out the pertinent investigations in an efficient manner, and in strict compliance with the guarantees of due process.

Starting in September of 2017 throughout April of this year, high levels of violence have been registered against persons with political positions at present and in the past, as well as pre-candidates and candidates, particularly at the local level, belonging to different affiliations and political movements of the country. Important sources indicate that there have been dozens of murders against political actors that took place in the pre-campaigns and inter-campaigns; threats to political actors and aggression against political women, many of which are pre-candidates and candidates.

In response to these acts, the Commission hopes the Mexican State will keep adopting all the necessary measures in order to guarantee the rights to life, personal integrity and security, of the candidates and of the people who currently hold elected positions, of all races and ethnicities. In particular, the State must keep adopting the necessary measures in order to guarantee the security of the political actors in the three levels of government, without distinction, so that the rights to elect and to be elected can be exercised free of violence.

The Commission also calls on the State to launch investigations into all the reported events, and to reinforce all those actions that ensure that those in progress are carried out in a diligent manner. These investigations should not only be aimed at establishing the material responsibilities for the facts, but also the possible intellectual authors. The IACHR emphasizes the importance of guaranteeing access to justice for the families.

A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for and to defend human rights in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. 102/18