CAT/C/75
page 19
cheekbone (between the right cheekbone and ear), inflammation of the right eye and
bruising beneath the right eye, reddish horizontal grazing on the abdomen, grazing on the
left forearm, grazing on the right side of the neck, grazing on the left lumbar region and
on the right forearm, and grazing and inflammation on both wrists.”13
“The judicial police (…) violated the complainants’ human rights since, while it is
true that a warrant had been issued for the arrest of Jose Manuel Saavedra Lázaro, and
that the intention of the police was to serve that warrant, it is also true that the warrant did
not authorize them to enter anyone’s home, to abuse their authority or to make excessive
use of the force they are authorized to use, which is what they did by entering the
property of Ms. Virginia Díaz Díaz without permission or consent; by using unwarranted
brute force against the complainant in the course of arresting him; and by gloating as they
beat him and caused him a number of injuries; the police officers also fired a gun,
wounding Ms. Consuelo Lázaro Díaz.”14
66.
The municipal police of San Antonio de la Cal “violated the complainants’ human rights,
not only by detaining them without legal grounds, but also by beating them and causing the
injuries they presented, which were certified by the deputy inspector dealing with the case and
by the State forensic medical expert. This Commission finds that the members of the police
force of this municipality repeatedly and daily abuse the authority to use force vested in them by
assaulting and meting out unwarranted punishment to individuals they are required to detain for
any reason”.15
67.
In the course of his interview with the members of the Committee, the President of the
State Human Rights Commission said that, although the practice of torture had declined
considerably in Mexico, incidents still occurred, involving mainly the judicial police, and that
training programmes were inadequate. He also said that it was necessary to make judiciary staff
aware of the problem of torture, so that they would classify incidents correctly, which was not
always the case at present. He said that between January and August 2001, he had received
17 complaints of abuse of authority by police patrols and 20 of abuse of authority by the judicial
police. He had also received five in which the Army was allegedly responsible.
5. Guerrero State Commission for the Defence of Human Rights
68.
The ninth annual report of the Guerrero State Commission, covering the period from
November 1998 to October 1999, indicates that the Commission issued nine recommendations
relating to torture, four to injuries, one to threats and one to intimidation.16 The tenth report
(November 1999-October 2000) refers to 12 recommendations relating to injuries, 6 to threats
and 7 to torture. The torture cases were attributed to the State judicial police. In addition, views
and proposals were issued in 48 cases of bodily injury, 9 of torture, 5 of beating, 17 of
intimidation and 16 of threats.17
69.
In the course of his interview with the members of the Committee, the President of the
State Commission said that, although it had declined, torture had not been eradicated either in
Mexico as a whole or in Guerrero State; those responsible were generally members of the
judicial police and the Office of the Attorney-General was doing nothing to punish the
perpetrators.
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