Mexican Troops Unpunished for Human Rights Violations: Report

Despite reforms being put in place, a large number of Mexican troops remain unpunished for human rights violations, according to a report.

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The report detailed discrepancies in investigation procedures, limited access to the accounts of accused individuals as well as evidence and witness tampering.

The Washington Office on Latin America's study found only 16 convictions of soldiers in Mexico’s civilian judicial system, out of 505 investigations from 2012 to 2016.

Military officials have been accused of torture, killing and forcing disappearance of individuals as well as operating outside of ethical guidelines.

Only 3.2 percent of soldiers who were charged with waging a war on drug gangs have been prosecuted, including two chain-of-command responsibility convictions.

A 2014 incident which involved the deaths of about 22 people in Tlatlaya pandered to the accusations that the Mexican military was corrupt and ill-equipped to counter suspected criminals.

“The Tlatlaya case illustrates that holding military and civilian investigations concurrently delays and obstructs justice ... (and) shows that in military jurisdiction, cases of grave human rights violations also go unchecked or remain unpunished,” the report said.

The soldiers reported that the individuals were killed in a shootout, but evidence pointed to execution-style deaths.

Charges were brought against 7 soldiers, who were acquitted based on insufficient evidence.

Tuesday’s report says that the vast majority of human rights abuses allegedly committed by Mexican soldiers in the country’s war on drug gangs go unsolved and unpunished despite reforms letting civilian authorities investigate and prosecute such crimes.

“This militarized public security model has negatively impacted Mexico’s criminal justice system. The civilian justice system faces challenges which limit civilian authorities’ ability to sanction soldiers implicated in crimes and human rights violations,” the group said.

Former Mexican President Felipe Calderon assigned military officials to wage an all-out war on drug cartels since late 2006. The policy has remained in place under current President Enrique Peña Nieto.

The Washington Office on Latin America said the report was based on three main sources: interviews with human rights groups and lawyers, right-to-information requests and collaboration with journalists.

According to the report, over US$521 million in counter-drug assistance has flowed from the U.S. Defense Department to the Mexican military since 2008.

The United States has outfitted the Mexican military with helicopters and provided training for security forces through the multibillion-dollar Merida Initiative.