Tag Archives: Mexico

Global Day of Action in Support of Victims of Torture

19 Jun

468x283mexicotorture2Friday 26th June is the annual Global Day of Action in Support of Victims of Torture.  Amnesty is currently running a major campaign focused on the use of torture. To support the Global Day of Action, please would you sign a petition demanding justice for victims of torture in Mexico?

Amnesty’s research shows that torture in Mexico has increased by 600% since 2003. Despite making the right noises, the Mexican authorities have failed to properly tackle the issue. Claims of torture are rarely properly investigated, and scant few perpetrators are ever brought to justice.

Prompt and impartial forensic medical examinations are a key step towards justice for victims. Such examinations rarely happen and when they do, they are often years after the claims of torture – by which point, many physical wounds have healed and the experts often fail to document the psychological signs of torture.

The fact that timely and impartial examinations rarely happen is a big contributor to the on-going culture of torturers getting away with it. Change this, and we will be on the road to justice. There’s increasing pressure on Mexico to sort this out and with a new Federal Attorney General in post we have a real chance of making a difference.

Please sign the petition here.

Thank you.

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Stop Torture Casefile: Mexico: Claudia Medina Tamariz

25 May

Claudia Medina Tamariz woke at 3am on 7 August 2012, to find marines had broken into her home in Veracruz City. They tied her hands, blindfolded her and took her to the local naval base where she says she was given electric shocks, beaten and kicked. She was wrapped in plastic to disguise the marks from the beating. Claudia, a mother of three, was accused of being a member of a violent criminal gang, which she denies.

The day after her arrest, she was blindfolded again and taken with other detainees to the Federal Attorney General’s Office. When the blindfold was removed, she realised her husband and brother-in-law had also been arrested. A prosecutor interrogated Claudia and a marine pressured her into signing a statement that she wasn’t allowed to read.

In court, she retracted her statement and described the abuse inflicted on her in detention. All the charges against her except one (carrying an illegal weapon) were dropped, and she was released on bail.

A judge ordered the Federal Attorney General’s Office to investigate her allegations. But to date no specialist medical and psychological assessment has been conducted, even though Mexico is obliged to do this under UN guidelines for investigating torture, nor has anyone been held to account for Claudia’s torture.

 Take Action: How you can help

1) Write to the Federal Attorney General, calling on him to investigate the alleged torture and ill-treatment suffered by Claudia Medina Tamariz, make the results public and bring those responsible to justice.

Address:  Federal Attorney General Jesús Murillo Karam, Procuraduría General de la República, Av. Paseo de la Reforma 211-213, Col. Cuauhtémoc C.P. 06500, Mexico D.F., MEXICO

2) Let Claudia know that you are thinking of her and support her struggle for justice.

  • Address: Claudia Medina Tamariz, Centro de Derechos Humanos, ‘Miguel Agustin Pro Juárez’, Serapio Rendón 57-B, Colonia San Rafael, D elegación Cuauhtémoc 06470, Mexico D.F., MEXICO
  • Preferred language: Spanish
  • Suggested message: Estimada Claudia, Te envío mi solidaridad por la difícil situación que has tenido que vivir desde 2012. Quiero que sepas que estoy contigo y que te apoyo en la lucha que has decidido emprender ( Dear Claudia, I am concerned about your situation and support you in your fight for justice.
  • Please do not send a religious card. It is ok to mention Amnesty and include a return address if you wish

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