Mexico City, 3 May 2010

Press Release

Atenco: the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) call upon the Mexican State to respond to torture

* Since the Special Prosecutor for Violence Against Women declined jurisdiction over the case the investigations have been paralyzed

* The IACHR has asked the Mexican State to respond to the facts

* The State requested an extension and to date has not responded to the grave violations perpetrated against the women

For four years the Mexican State has proved unwilling or unable to prosecute and punish those responsible for serious human rights violations perpetrated on May 3 and May 4, 2006. in Texcoco and San Salvador Atenco.

Mexico City, 29 April 2010

Press Release

* After nearly four years of unjust imprisonment, we celebrate the release of Alberta Alcántara Juan and Teresa González Cornelio

* Structural deficiencies persist in Mexico's justice system 

* Society must maintain its attention on the many similiar cases so that justice becomes a reality in Mexico, especially for those who are discriminated against and excluded

Finally, after nearly four years of unjust imprisonment, Alberta Alcántara Juan and Teresa González Cornelio, Ñhä-ñhú indigenous women falsely accused of kidnapping agents of the former Federal Investigation Agency (AFI) in the community of Santiago Mexquititlán, in southern Querétaro state in March 2006, were released from prison.

The families of Alberta and Teresa, and the Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez and Fray Jacobo Daciano Human Rights Centers (who represent the women) celebrate their release. The ruling of the First Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court (SCJN) that acquitted them of all charges yesterday is an act of justice that demonstrates the violation of fundamental rights of both women by the authorities.

The intervention of the Supreme Court has been relevant to show the irregularities in the criminal process. We welcome that this highest Court has accepted the arguments of the defense and overturned the guilty verdict issued by the fourth district judge in Querétaro, in connection with the criminal case 48/2006, declaring that this sentence was unfounded because no kidnapping had been demonstrated.

The decision of the Court in favor of Alberta and Teresa is not enough to guarantee access to justice for many other women in Mexico. However, the message is clear: the authorities must put a stop to such practices and judges should correct human rights violations and irregularities instead of endorse them.

The dysfunctionality of the Mexican justice system, as evidenced yesterday by the Supreme Court, allows highly repudiated crimes -such as kidnapping- to be fabricated by the State to act in a spirit of revenge and reprisal against those who defend their rights or are opposed to the abuses of those in power. This happened in this case, in which the charges against Jacinta Francisco Marcial (who was released in September 2009), Alberta, and Teresa were a measure aimed at punishing the legitimate and non-violent protest of the merchants of Santiago Mexquititlán against abuses of the then AFI officers. The Supreme Court resolution establishes a precedent to prevent the partisan use of the justice system by local and federal authorities in response to public protests by groups that legitimately defend their rights.

The release of Alberta and Teresa is only one component of justice. This should also include full compensation for damage, guarantees of non-repetition and punishment of those responsible for the wrongful imprisonment. In this regard, all federal and state officials who have expressed interest in this case have the ethical and political obligation to promote the necessary changes designed to implement effective mechanisms that safeguard human rights within the justice system. Proposals such as the Anti-Kidnapping Act or repressive mechanisms such as “arraigo” (prolonged detention without charges) deeply contradict the discourse of some political actors in favor of human rights in this case. Similarly, the lack of interest in the effective implementation of reforms on indigenous rights and the laws that seek to eradicate violence against women show little willingness to make substantial changes in the issues that the case of Alberta and Teresa has brought to the forefront.

We appreciate the widespread solidarity of those who with their participation and attention have helped to highlight the deteriorating human rights situation in Mexico and to demand that the Mexican State take responsible action in this regard. This attention and support must be maintained to ensure that justice becomes a reality in Mexico, especially for those who are discriminated against and marginalized.

For more information, please contact:

Center Prodh’s Communication and Analysis Area

Quetzalcoatl g. Fontanot

Tel. +52 (55) 55468217 ext. 110; +52 (55) 55466559 (direct)

Mobile: +521 (55) 39175068

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Shortly the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) shall rule on the status of Alberta Alcántara and Teresa González. Contact Supreme Court Justice Olga Sánchez Cordero to request that the case be resolved with independence and impatiality.

 Address to direct your letters:

Model letter for individuals

Model letter for groups

Please send your letters to:

Olga María del Carmen Sánchez Cordero
Ministra de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación
Pino Suárez Número 2, Colonia Centro, Delegación Cuauhtémoc, C.P. 06065
México, Distrito Federal
Correo-e: \n This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Esta dirección de correo electrónico está protegida contra los robots de spam, necesitas tener Javascript activado para poder verla
Fax: 01 (55) 4195 5121

Mexico City, 13 April 2010

Today, a group of women complaining of sexual torture by the events of 3 and 4 May, 2006 in Texcoco and San Salvador Atenco, visited Alberta Alcántara and Teresa González, who are imprisoned in the penitentiary of San José el Alto in Querétaro since August 2006 for the alleged kidnapping of six federal investigation agents (AFIS).

The visit took place with the solidarity that the women of Atenco want to express to Alberta and Teresa, as they have also been victims of an unjust criminal justice system, which unlawfully and arbitrarily detained them for participating in lawful actions of solidarity and social protest. The detention of the women of Atenco included acts of torture and the subjection to criminal proceedings in which the authorities falsely accused them of fabricated crimes such as attacks on roads, kidnapping and organized crime. The case of Alberta and Teresa has also demonstrated the fabrication of evidence and the imputation of crimes that did not exist, perversely using the criminal justice system.

The women denouncing torture in Atenco gradually regained their freedom once they proved their innocence through various legal actions. They had to do so in a system that erroneously presumes guilt as a premise, as in the case of Alberta and Teresa, but their release, which occurred after months or years in some cases, did not involve access to justice. In this sense, the women of Atenco maintain their call for justice for the human rights violations committed against them, since the perpetrators remain unpunished while no kind of responsibility has being attributed to federal and state authorities who took part in the operation. A similar situation also prevails in the case of the hñahñús indigenous women Alberta and Teresa, since the aggressor AFI agents, as well as the people who orchestrated the fabricated charges, continue to operate normally with no accountability.

The many similarities of the case of Alberta and Teresa and the one of the women of Atenco, in which Center Prodh also accompanies the demand for justice, generated a sense of solidarity among the victims of the Mexican State. One of these similarities has to do with the fact that the women of Atenco have been victims of a justice system that discriminates by reason of gender.

Alberta and Teresa were arrested following an irregular operation conducted by members of the former Federal Investigation Agency (AFI). In the events of March 26, 2006, Alberta and Teresa opposed the abuses of the agents who wanted to victimize the street market vendors, and asked the agents for their identification, which was denied. This attitude was prosecuted and punished in a discriminatory manner since these two women were arrested and charged with a kidnapping that never happened, to send a message of threat and repression to their community.

The irregularities and inequities in the process of Alberta and Teresa are so serious that they must recover their freedom as soon as possible. Recently, the Mexican Supreme Court’s First Chamber brought the case to its jurisdiction, thus it should deliver within the next few months a favorable decision to both women, in addition to analyzing discrimination against persons on grounds of gender, social or economic status, and also to discuss the disproportionate and perverse use of certain definitions of crime, such as kidnapping, to punish signs of social unrest.

On the occasion of this meeting the women of Atenco stated that: “After the visit we left very angry because we realize that injustice against women is not exclusive to Atenco. Women are constant victims of a justice system that excludes and discriminates against us. The case of Alberta and Teresa is a very clear example of this and we were very pleased to share our experiences with them. In the end we left with the idea that there are more affected people than just the women of Atenco and Alberta and Teresa. In this sense, the struggle continues, to achieve not only their freedom but a fairer system.”