At 9 pm on Monday, two women walking along Camino Rotario, heading towards the roundabout of the miners.

But before reaching the intersection, a man emerged from some bushes near the river that runs through the site and threaten women. -- Source

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Amnesty lambastes culture of impunity

BY NACHA CATTAN

The News

The nation's human rights commissioner on Thursday dismissed a new Amnesty International report as a "rehash" of what his commission has been saying for years.

José Luis Soberanes, the president of the National Human Rights Comission, or CNDH, called Amnesty's conclusions regarding Mexico a "refrito," or rehashed, during a conference in the Senate on Thursday.

"It does not add anything new and repeats reports and situations well known in each of the areas it explores," the CNDH said later in a statement.

Released on Thursday, Amnesty International's annual human rights review of over 150 countries criticized Mexican authorities for making few inroads to combat impunity.

Mexico is one of 19 countries that Amnesty considers a "high priority" due to precarious conditions on the ground. The report includes a series of grave violations committed by military and police as well as violence directed at women, journalists and human rights defenders - the latter of which is most disturbing, Amnesty's Mexico director, Alberto Herrera, told The News.

As examples, the organization highlights the arrests of indigenous activists on "fabricated" charges of murder in Ayutla, Guerrero, and repeated threats and reprisals faced by migrant activists providing humanitarian assistance and documenting beatings of migrants in Ciudad Ixtepec, Oaxaca. Such abuses are rarely punished while those apprehended, such as military personnel, do not undergo rigorous trials.

"Impunity is practically the norm," Herrera said. "All three levels of government - municipal, state and federal - have a responsibility in this."

Herrera responded to Soberanes' comments by criticizing the commission for its own failures in handling abuse cases in Mexico, saying the CNDH does little to pressure abusive parties to follow the commission's recommendations.

The CNDH and international rights groups have been sparring since the New York-based Human Rights Watch published a lengthy report in February 2008 accusing the commission of sitting on its hands while rights violations occur. Amnesty has also weighed in against the commission.

Herrera said Amnesty's four-page section on Mexico was researched by a local investigative team that focuses exclusively on the country. Only two other countries in Latin America, Brazil and Colombia, receive such thorough treatment, he said. Herrera acknowledged that researchers cannot investigate every abuse case, but instead pick out those that are emblematic of national problems.

The report touches on various groups vulnerable to heavy-handed tactics by authorities, or who are unprotected against rights violations.

Amnesty notes that despite the deployment of tens of thousands of soldiers to fight organized crime, violence only rose in 2008. Reports implicating military personnel in torture and unlawful killings have also increased, the report said.

Torture of prisoners is commonplace, the report adds, citing legal claims of beatings filed by three men arrested in a grenade attack in Morelia, Michoacán, on Independence Day.

In addition, the Baja California Human Rights Commission concluded that some of the 30 prisoners who died during riots at La Mesa state prison in Tijuana had been killed by security forces, according to Amnesty.

Violence against women has remained widespread, the report says, with 75 women murdered in Ciudad Juárez in 2008. And while 28 states enacted legislation to protect women from domestic violence, only the federal government and three state governments published regulations to enforce the laws, Amnesty said.

The organization will lead activists on June 28 from Mexico City to Gue-rrero to protest the imprisonment of an indigenous Me'phaa leader and a "general climate of harassment and intimidation against human rights defenders," Herrera told reporters Thursday.

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Spotlight Fallacy and Crime in Mexico

In a column I wrote in August of 2005, titled, Kidnapping Americans in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, I said this about the American press and their coverage of the events then taking place in the border city: Click Here for Article.

Living in Mexico - My Wife Was Attacked

In our first book, "The Plain Truth about Living in Mexico," I wrote a chapter about crime. In that chapter, I tried to drive home the point that by "comparison," Mexico is safer than the United States. I quoted FBI statistics and stories to make the point that Americans, when regarding crime in Mexico, needed to have a little perspective. I no longer hold that view. Read More.

Gay Couple Attacked

A month ago we had a robbery, which turned into a brutal, attempted murder on Sollano Street in centro.

Two Mexicans in there mid twenties appeared at our door at 9pm onWednesday the 12th of December. They insisted that they knew us and had just returned from a long trip to Chicago. Since they asked for me by my legal name James Castro we were suspicious, However, they seemed convincing after a few minutes of conversation. We decided to meet them at the door and ultimately let them in to discuss how we had met.

They were polite and appeared educated and genuine. After 10-15minutes they became violent. We were discovered the next morninglocked in our wine cellar. Both of us were severely beaten and barely able to move. The next morning, Wesley was able to make enough noise to get the attention of our staff. I was found with a noose around my neck and rolled up in a tarp. The doctors later discovered that I had lost half of my blood. We are both lucky to have survived.

The criminals somehow loaded all of our televisions, computers and other electronics including a heavy safe into their vehicle on Sollano.

After spending a week in the hospital and a few weeks recovering we have decided to publicly share our story. Our mistake was clearly in being trusting. We are now taking the precautions necessary to protect ourselves and want to provide awareness to others.

We are not immune in San Miguel de Allende to some of the crimes that have occurred elsewhere in Mexico. Our experience has beendevastating. We greatly appreciate the love and support that hasbeen demonstrated by our friends in San Miguel. We will be forever grateful.

The city has not responded to our situation and, after a month, has made no progress on our case. We are frustrated by the legal system here but will continue to do what is necessary to find the criminals.

Jim Castro & Wesley Gleason