MSG139G/01E MEXICO-HUMAN RIGHTS: Army Accused of Abuses in Chiapas Conflict
WASHINGTON, Dic 14 (IPS) - Two human rights organisations on Wednesday accused the Mexican army of serious violations during the guerrilla uprising in the southern state of Chiapas in January.
Human Rights Watch/Americas and Physicians for Human Rights sent a letter to Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo, calling on him to investigate and place responsibility for summary executions, arbitrary detentions, torture and attacks on hospitals.
The groups base their report on a 100 page forensic investigation, as well as interviews with surviving victims and family members.
However, the report also accuses the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) of violating the rules of war by killing noncombatants and taking hostages, and asks the rebels to take disciplinary measures against those responsible.
According to the document, the Mexican Attorney General's Office and the National Human Rights Commission - responsible for investigating the abuses by the army - did not carry out their tasks in a timely and independent manner.
"The official investigations into extrajudicial executions and other serious abuses have been inadequate and -intentionally or not - seriously negligent," said Eric Stover, executive director of Physicians for Human Rights, who wrote the report with Sebastian Brett of Human Rights Watch.
In one of the most well known cases, the organisations accuse the Attorney General's Office of attempting to cover-up the presumed participation of government troops in the summary executions of five men in the market place in the village of Ocosingo.
Military personell were acquited of any involvement in the killings, in spite of the fact that local organisations showed their testimony to be questionable.
The report by the human rights groups states that the Attorney General's Office "has shown more interest in protecting the reputation of the Mexican army than in conducting an independent investigation into the abuses in Chiapas."
They also call on President Zedillo to end the silence regarding what actually occurred in Chiapas, in that a full disclosure would serve to create the climate of trust necessary for peace, as well as help to avoid future abuses.
In addition, the report cites the need to form a special independent commission to investigate human rights abuses committed by the army, the clarification of the amnesty law so that accused troops will be tried, and a Congressional investigation into why violations were permitted.
© Inter Press Service (2014) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service