CAT/OP/MEX/1/Add.2
102. To give effect to the constitutional amendments of 12 December 2005, the fifty-sixth
legislature of Mexico State promulgated, by Decree No. 29 published in the government
gazette of 25 January 2007, the State Juvenile Justice Act, which provides for an essentially
oral system of justice.
7.
Reforms in the state of Oaxaca
103. Various modifications to the constitutional provisions on human rights were
published in Oaxaca on 15 April 2011 in the official gazette of the state government. These
amendments involved changes to the name and functions of the State Human Rights
Commission and the establishment within the state high court of a constitutional division,
whose powers include the conduct of proceedings for the protection of human rights, which
may refer to acts prohibited under article 22 of the Federal Constitution and article 8,
section B II, of the State Constitution concerning the prohibition of acts of torture by
Mexican government institutions, including public security authorities, and also under
article 170 bis, paragraph 2, of the State Code of Criminal Procedure in regard the to ex
officio imposition of pretrial detention on persons who commit acts of torture, as provided
for in article 1 and penalized under articles 2, 3 and 4 of the State Act on the Prevention and
Punishment of Torture.
104. In August 2011 the state government adopted the Act Regulating the Use of Force
by Personnel of Public Security Institutions of the State of Oaxaca, which reproduces the
offences described in the Federal Act on the Prevention and Punishment of Torture. The
Act establishes a general obligation on the part of public security institutions to pursue
ongoing measures to prevent any act of torture or cruel or degrading treatment related to the
use of force and to prohibit the infliction, instigation or toleration of any act of torture or
other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The Oaxaca Department of
Public Security is preparing a manual on the implementation of this Act, for which the text
of the Istanbul Protocol is being used as a basis.
105. The practice of preventive custody has been revoked under the State Criminal
Code and the State Code of Criminal Procedure in March 2012. As part of this measure,
article 17, section XVII, of the State Criminal Code is being deleted and article 2,
section III, article 19 bis and article 64 of the Code of Criminal Procedure are being
amended.
106. Within the Oaxaca legal system the State Attorney-General’s Office is promoting
the adoption of a law on victim support, assistance and protection which will cover victims
of crime and use the term “victim” in a broad sense.
107. With regard to criminal justice, the accusatorial system has been instituted by the
state government in the regions of Istmo de Tehuantepec and Mixteca, and the coordinating
council for implementation of this system anticipates that it will be introduced in the
regions of Costa from 9 May 2012, Cuenca from 9 May 2013 and Valles Centrales
from 9 May 2014. In a second stage it will be introduced in the regions of Cañada, Sierra
Norte and Sierra Sur if the state budgetary allocations so allow. The periods for entry into
operation may change, subject to decree of the Chamber of Deputies.
108. The state government is in the process of submitting a co-funding strategy involving
international actors, such as the United States Government, in order to facilitate the
mechanisms for strengthening and advancing the reforms in criminal matters.
109. The Community Services Department, in coordination with the Attorney-General’s
Advisers Department, has carried out various activities aimed at preventing cases of torture,
providing training for municipal authorities and raising public awareness.
GE.13-41196 (EXT)
37
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