IACHR

Press Release

IACHR Begins On-Site Visit to Mexico

September 28, 2015

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Mexico City. – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) begins today an on-site visit to Mexico that will last until October 2. The Commission will observe the general human rights situation in the country, with particular emphasis on extrajudicial executions, forced disappearances, and torture. Additionally, the IACHR will focus on the situation of citizen insecurity, access to justice for victims of human rights violations, and the situation of journalists, human rights defenders, and other groups particularly affected by the context of violence in Mexico.

The delegation that will CONDUCT the visit is led by the President of the IACHR, Rose-Marie Belle Antoine; First Vice-President, James Cavallaro; and Commissioners Felipe González, Tracy Robinson, and Rosa María Ortiz, and includes the IACHR Executive Secretary, Emilio Álvarez Icaza; the Assistant Executive Secretary, Elizabeth Abi Mershed; and the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Edison Lanza; as well as specialists from the Executive Secretariat.

The Inter-American Commission will meet with government officials from the three branches of government, and it will also meet with civil society representatives, autonomous bodies and international organizations, as well as receive testimonies from victims of human rights violations. The delegation will visit Mexico City, as well as the States of Guerrero, Tabasco, Nuevo León, Coahuila and Veracruz.

The Commission will present its preliminary observations at the end of its visit, during a press conference to be held on Friday, October 2nd, in a time and place to be announced during the week.

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 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.

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Photos of the visit wil be updated daily in Flickr.

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