In yesterday´s press conference Alejandra Ancheita, director of the Project on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Mexico (Proyecto de Derechos Económicos, Sociales y Culturales en México, ProDESC) confirmed the closure of the Worker Support Centre´s offices (Centro de Apoyo al Trabajador, CAT) in the state of Puebla in light of the threats and attacks against its members.
After announcing the closure of the CAT office, Alejandra Ancheita recounted the events that transpired on the 15th May, which have been registered at the Attorney General's Office (Procuraduría General de la República, PGR). She went on to explain that Enrique Morales, a member of the CAT in Puebla, had been held and isolated from any means of communication for approximately 17 hours, in which he was subjected to physical and psychological torture. Furthermore, these acts of aggression were extended to Morales´s family and other members of the CAT. After he was set free, CAT´s director Blanca Velásquez received two text messages threatening her with being the next to be kidnapped and that she would be killed. Blanca Velázquez and Enrique Morales did not attend the press conference due to the lack of guarantees to their personal safety.
This is not the first time that the CAT has registered attacks against them which relate to their work in the promotion and defence of worker´s rights in Puebla. Prodesc´s director referred to the events at the end of 2010 when unidentified persons burgled the office and left a message on the wall saying “You don´t know who you´ve got yourself involved with.” Following this, CAT employees, members of the National Union of Mine, Metal, Steel and Allied Workers of Mexico (Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores Mineros, Metalúrgicos, Siderúrgicos y Similares de la República Mexicana) and Alejandra Ancheita herself have received threatening emails.
During the conference Javier Hernandez, representative of the UN´s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Mexico, described the closing of the CAT´s offices as a “shameful” event attributing it to the ineffectiveness of those responsible for providing protection and obtaining results in the investigations.
Agnieszka Raczynska, Executive Secretary of the National Network "All Rights for All," stated that the CAT´s closure is an example of the current shortcomings in the implementation of protection measures for human rights defenders in Mexico, both locally and federally. In addition, one month before this incident, the Human Rights Commission of Puebla unilaterally withdrew the CAT´s protection measures without providing any explanation.
Agnieszka recalled that "Mexico is very close to having a protection mechanism for human rights defenders," stating that this is an opportunity for the Mexican state to carry out effective action in accordance to its obligation to protect human rights defenders.
A bulletin signed by ProDESC, CAT, TdT Network, Centre Prodh and the Miners' Union called for a quick and effective investigation into the most recent incident and those of 2010, thus leading to the identification and punishment of those responsible.
For more information
Press Release (Spanish pdf), May 31, 2012, Mexico City
Urgent Action, May 16, 2012, Mexico City