The International Observatory for Lawyers expresses its deep concern regarding threats and repeated intimidations of which the lawyer Alba Cruz is victim in Oaxaca, southwest of Mexico.
Description of the situation:
Alba Cruz is a fervent Mexican lawyer and a defender of human rights. She exercises her profession in the State of Oaxaca.
She is a lawyer part of the Comité de Defensa Integral de Derechos Humanos Gobixha, (CODIGO-DH), a defense organization of human rights which took over the Comité de Liberación 25 de Noviembre, which activities ceased in December 2010. Within the CODIGO-DH, she brings legal aid to victims of violations of fundamental rights in the State of Oaxaca.
Alba Cruz represented in particular the plaintiffs in the Oaxaca case before the Nation Supreme Court. Her work contributed in the adoption by the Nation Supreme Court of a resolution on 14 October 2009 which establishes the responsibility of the Governor of Oaxaca and of the local authorities for the violation of the individual guarantees during demonstrations which took place between May 2006 and July 2007 in the State of Oaxaca.
Alba Cruz also represented Juan Manuel Martinez Moreno, a Mexican citizen accused of the murder of the American journalist, Bradley Roland Will, shot dead during a march organized by the Asamblea Popular de los Pueblos de Oaxaca (APPO) on 27 October 2006. He was finally released in February 2010 after sixteen months of imprisonment due to absence of evidence from the prosecution.
Further to her involvement in several trials, Alba Cruz received, on numerous occasions, threats and went through acts of intimidation and harassment during 2007.
On 21 July 2007, following these threats, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (CIDH) provided measures of protection for Alba Cruz. However, the protective measures taken by the Mexican State in order to guarantee her protection and her safety seem ineffective and clearly insufficient. Indeed, on 11 and on 31 January 2011, Alba Cruz again received messages of threat on her mobile phone, threats which originated from the same phone number used in previous messages.
Already during the year 2010, she had received three times threats on her mobile phone. She had also been physically threatened in the street on 29 January of the same year.
As at today’s date, Alba Cruz‘ safety is not guaranteed.
Appeal from the International Observatory for Lawyers
The Observatory reminds that the independence of lawyers is one of the main pillars of the democracy and of the effectiveness of the State of law. The Observatory draws the attention of the Mexican authorities on the Basic Principles on the role of Lawyers, which were adopted by the Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, which was held in Havana (Cuba) from 27 August to 27 September 1990.
Principle No. 16:
“Governments shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; (b) are able to travel and to consult with their clients freely both within their own country and abroad; and (c) shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards and ethics”.
Principle No.17:
“Where the security of lawyers is threatened as a result of discharging their functions, they shall be adequately safeguarded by the authorities”.
The International Observatory for Lawyers requests:
- from Mexican authorities to take all the measures in order to guarantee the effective safety and protection of Alba Cruz and to comply with the measures requested by the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights.
The Observatory also requests from them to guarantee, under all circumstances, the free exercise of the mission of defense of Mexican lawyers.
- from Procuraduría General de la Nación (Prosecution), to take thorough decisions in order to identify the persons responsible for the threats, for the acts of intimidation and for the harassment against Alba Cruz.
- from the United Nations, from the European Commission and from other international organizations to urgently get in touch with the Mexican authorities so that the same authorities guarantee the effective safety of Alba Cruz and the free exercise of the profession of lawyer under all circumstances in Mexico.
- from professional bars and from organizations of lawyers, to bring their support to Alba Cruz and to use all means which they have in their possession to draw the attention of the Mexican authorities about her case.
This document is a production of the International Observatory of Lawyers (IOL). It may not be copied in its original form. The IOL denies any responsibility in the case of alteration or falsification of this document.
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