GOVERNMENT VIOLATING MEXICAN LAWS WITH EXPULSION OF INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS

Originally published in Spanish by Enlace Civil A.C.
enlacecivil@laneta.pac.org
Translated by irlandesa

By Jesus Ramirez Cuevas

The systematic campaign by the Mexican government against international human rights observers violates Mexican laws, infringes on the right to free association and undermines the law. So concludes the report, Foreigners of Conscience, published by Global Exchange and the Miguel Agustín Pro Human Rights Center, the Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights and the National Network of Human Rights Civil Organizations, "All Rights for All."

Three hundred foreigners have been sanctioned or expelled from the country over the last five years. According to reports from NGO's, "almost all the expulsions were in violation of the Mexican political Constitution itself." "One of the most serious problems is that all these human rights violations of the observers have gone completely unpunished."

This report will be presented simultaneously on May 18 in Mexico City and in Washington, where United states activists will deliver it to a group of congresspersons from that country. "This immigration policy that harasses international work is illegal under Mexican laws, and it contravenes international treaties and conventions signed by Mexico."

Just last year, 144 observers and humanitarian aid workers of various nationalities were forced to leave the Mexican Republic for having visited Chiapas. In addition, 100 foreigners were "invited" to "voluntarily" leave the nation by the National Immigration service (INM). These incidents were expulsions disguised with an Official Departure Letter (with a deadline of five days to leave the country), issued by immigration authorities after giving citations to foreigners who cross the checkpoints at the entrances to the Selva, Los Altos or the Northern region of the state.

"The federal Executive has abused its authority in order to hide the truth in Chiapas." "The Mexican government has tried to maintain its image as a promoter of human rights, despite the fact that the evidence demonstrates the opposite, by expelling dozens of international witnesses in Chiapas," says Global Exchange, an organization that has promoted human rights observation in the indigenous communities of Chiapas since 1994.

The report, Foreigners of Conscience, is based on an exhaustive investigation into the facts, and a thorough legal analysis, that was drawn up by Adriana Camarena of Stanford University in California, and by Federico Anaya Gallardo, a legal advisor to the Diocese of San Cristóbal de Las Casas and expert in immigration law.

The government is violating its own laws, citing Article 33 of the Mexican Constitution, that authorizes the Executive to expel citizens from other countries "who threaten national security," since Article 16 of the constitution guarantees, at the same time, the right of foreigners to know the reasons for which they are being expelled and to receive a fair hearing. "The expulsions have been carried out in an arbitrary and hasty manner, and those affected have not been afforded any rights."

"If President Zedillo's administration," - the report recommends - "wants to correctly enforce Article 33 of the Constitution and the General Residence Law, it should state its legal arguments in order to demonstrate that the conduct of the international observers is an intervention in Mexican politics," the lawyers warn.

According to Global Exchange, "Mexican citizens and organizations have invited international observers to help them in the delicate task of protecting the indigenous communities who have suffered harassment at the hands of military, police and paramilitary forces. This campaign against observers not only violates the right of observers to fair process, but it also violates the rights of Mexicans to freedom of association, since the government does not have any right to decide with whom citizens may associate."

"Foreigners essentially enjoy the same freedom and rights as Mexican citizens. Nonetheless, the Mexican government has refused to respect these rights, interpreting these very laws for their own political convenience," the lawyers conclude. "It is contradictory that the government grants permits for electoral observers and refuses to allow the entrance of international human rights observers."

Some of the hundreds of foreigners expelled from Mexico have begun legal processes against the Mexican government. According to the report, "the Mexican judicial branch has begun to render a series of decisions in favor of international human rights observers who had been expelled, thus demonstrating the clear unconstitutionality of their immigration policies."

The NGO investigators hold that there are other illegal acts that can be added to those, such as the change in immigration policies without congressional approval. For the last year, international observers have had to meet new requirements demanded by the INM: request their visa 30 days ahead and state what places and persons they will be visiting. Lastly, if the permit is granted, the Department of Government will only allow a 10 day maximum time period for the visit.

In response to the panorama described in the report, the NGO's made several recommendations to the Congress of the Union in order to repeal the President of the Republic's ability to expel foreigners. This would change the General Residence Law so that citizens from other nations could carry out humanitarian observation in the country "without unjustified restrictions," and to establish sanctions for those officials who "deny, obstruct or restrict access to the country" to the observers.

The report includes other recommendations for the federal Executive branch, the INM, the Department of National Defense, the Supreme Court of Justice of the nation, and to international organizations such as the UN Human Rights Commission, the Inter-American Human Rights Commission and Court, the countries of the European Union and national and international non-governmental organizations.

Persecution of Foreigners Increased Following the Acteal Massacre

Since the armed uprising in 1994, Mexico and the world have been able to see the human rights violations in Chiapas. Hundreds of observers and humanitarian aid workers began arriving in the state from then on.

The international presence increased in Chiapas following the military offensive against the zapatistas in 1995. The Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Human Rights Center and other organizations of civil society organized the Civilian Peace Camps (CCP) at the request of the communities affected by the militarization. The purpose of these camps, made up of Mexican and foreign activists, has been two-fold: to discourage aggression by the Mexican army and the paramilitary groups towards the indigenous communities and to report human rights violations.

The aggression against foreigners of conscience increased dramatically following the Acteal massacre of 1997, when 45 indigenous were assassinated by paramilitaries. In 1998 the international presence became embroiled in controversy, with the expulsion of hundreds of international observers.

The "Foreigners of Conscience" investigation makes a detailed recounting of hostile acts against foreign visitors. Here one can find President Zedillo's statement in the Yucatan (January 23, 1998): "It is inadmissible for there to be people who violate our laws and who are directly involved in the chiapaneco conflict, even though they use humanitarian reasons for doing so."

In February of this year, 200 observers from the "Civil Mission for Human Rights Observation in Europe and Latin America" arrived. The government unleashed a harassment campaign against them in San Cristóbal de Las Casas. ""Immigration agents were chasing tourists through the streets and visiting the houses where they were staying (February 17, 1998, letter signed by 17 national and international NGO's)."

On April 12, 1998, two AP (Associated Press) photographers were beaten up by the police at the Tuxtla Gutiérrez airport, on the orders of immigration police, while they were taking pictures of 12 foreigners deported following the military operation in Taniperlas, municipality of Ocosingo.

At that time, Pierre Sane, Secretary General of Amnesty International explained in an interview: "Arresting and expelling foreigners indicates an inward tendency in Mexico. A tendency can be observed to arrange the Chiapas problem behind closed doors, and that is dangerous, because they want to eliminate international witnesses. That means that the government has bad intentions. (2/21/98)."

The detention and expulsion of international observers during the first six months of 1998 occurred at the same time as a campaign by the Department of Government to undermine the credibility of those actors seeking a peaceful solution to the conflict. On June 7, Samuel Ruiz resigned his role as mediator, and the Conai was dissolved. In April, the Department of Government had begun an investigation into the Diocese of San Cristóbal and its Human Rights Center for having issued credentials to international observers.

Taking advantage of this hostile climate, the government and the federal army have created restricted areas for international observation in the North, Los Altos and the Selva, in places like Taniperla, Los Platanos and Tila. It is no coincidence that these are also the places where there is the most paramilitary activity, threatening zapatista communities.

The Vision of the Indigenous Communities

The perspective of the affected communities was compiled by Global Exchange in their report. Luciano, spokesperson for the San Pedro Chenalho Autonomous Municipality, explained: "I read in the papers that Zedillo and Labastida Ochoa said the foreigners come to organize and manipulate the indigenous. It's not true. We invited the foreigners so that they could observe and verify that we weren't lying about what the government is doing, that they (the security forces and the paramilitaries) are surrounding us, threatening to kill us."

A spokesperson for Las Abejas of Acteal agreed: "The government is always looking for excuses in order to say that the foreigners are manipulating us. That's not true, we have our own minds. We're not the puppets of foreigners, we have the right to organize ourselves. We know how to govern ourselves as indigenous, with our own culture."

"The result of the foreign presence," Luciano points out, "is that the low intensity war has lessened." While Las Abejas note, for their part, that "the soldiers aren't going into the displaced camps anymore, because the observers are there." On the other hand, a representative from Aric-Independent, of the Ricardo Flores Magon Autonomous Municipality, reported that "after the expulsion of the observers from Taniperla, there has been increased harassment by the Public Security police, by the federal soldiers and by the paramilitaries.

Relevant Examples of Expulsion of Foreigners in 1998:

In 1998, the government expelled more than 100 foreigners, enforcing Article 33. The Mexican government's hostility towards international monitors is not owing to the political nature of their activities, but rather to the fact that information on human rights violations could have a profound effect on other countries' policies towards Mexico.

The Taniperla 12.

On April 11, 1998, hundreds of federal army soldiers, state police and immigration agents violently broke into Taniperla, located in the municipality of Ocosingo. The 12 international observers were detained without arrest warrants and expelled, despite the fact that their immigration documents were in order. Months later, the 12 observers sought a protection order against their expulsion. In February 1999, a district judge ruled in their favor. The government did not document the reasons for their enforcement of Article 33. A Circuit Court is reviewing the appeals by the government and by those affected.

Peter Brown

On July 24, 1998, Peter Brown, professor and North American citizen, was expelled from Mexico. Brown was working on a project in the communities of Los Altos in Chiapas, helping in the construction of a school. The humanitarian activist was detained by immigration agents at a military checkpoint in San Andres Larráinzar, taken to Mexico City and expelled the following day.

The Italian delegation.

In May 1998, 120 Italian citizens were expelled from Mexico. They had arrived in Mexico in order to monitor human rights violations in Chiapas. Their immigration documents prohibited them from visiting three places: La Realidad, Polhó and Oventic. The Italians decided to visit Taniperla despite the prohibition the INM had delivered at the last moment. Forty of them have been forbidden from returning to Mexico permanently. Article 33 was enforced against them, despite the fact that their stay was regulated by the General Residence Law.

Some of the Italians filed a legal complaint against the expulsion. In the fall of 1998, a district judge granted them federal protection. The Mexican government appealed the decision, and the Circuit Court is currently reviewing the case.

The cases of Peter Brown, the Taniperla 12 and the Italians, demonstrate how the government has justified the expulsion of foreigners. All the activities carried out by those expelled have been acts of humanitarian support to the indigenous communities who regularly suffer the violation of their human rights. The protection orders initiated by foreign priests, international observers and humanitarian workers expelled from Chiapas are the first precedents, and they could become a legal milestone for this issue.

The case of Michel Chanteau.

On February 26, 1998, parish priest Michel Chanteau was expelled. He had been a priest for more than 32 years in Chenalhó, the municipality where the Acteal massacre had occurred two months previously. Father Chanteau was deported by the INM, who enforced Chapter 10 of the General Residence Law, because he had made statements on television accusing the Mexican government of being responsible for the massacre of 45 indigenous in Acteal. The government said that only Mexicans could make statements on television. His case is being reviewed by the Supreme Court at this moment.

The case of Tom Hansen.

On January 18, 1998 North American citizen Tom Hansen was detained by immigration agents. Hansen had participated in more than 30 humanitarian delegations to Chiapas since 1994, with the authorization of the Mexican government. The following day he was expelled from the country, from the Mexico City international airport. During his transfer from Chiapas to Mexico City, Hansen was threatened with death. Tom Hansen's lawyers filed a protection order against the expulsion, and they received a favorable decision in July 1998, but the INM appealed the decision. The Second Circuit Court of Legal Matters is currently reviewing the appeal of the order.

The Case of the Three Detained Norwegians.

Three Norwegian tourists were arbitrarily detained by judicial and state police on the night of April 14, 1998, while they were visiting the "10 de Abril" community. The police agents photographed the Norwegians next to a placard that said: "Stop the militarization - civil camp for peace - zapatista rebel territory." The following day they were thrown out of the country. Regarding these three cases, the INM has stated publicly that the foreigners had violated their visas by participating in political activities exclusively for Mexicans. The INM enforces immigration laws that have no connection with Article 33. Immigration authorities do not have the same powers of expulsion that the President of the Republic has.

Father Michel Chanteau's case is the first to reach the Supreme Court using this argument. If Chanteau's case wins in the final decision by the highest court in the country, a precedent would be established that could end the arbitrary exercise of power granted to the INM.

Globalizing the Conflict

At the same time as capital has been globalized, a stronger international interest in human rights has emerged. The trade agreement that Mexico is negotiating with the European Union includes a clause on human rights and democracy that sets the regulations and the humanitarian standards expected of the trading members.

On January 1, 1994, when NAFTA went into effect, the EZLN appeared in public. The reports of human rights violations reached all citizens of conscience throughout the globe. The use of the Internet amplified the voice of the zapatistas throughout the world.

Responding to the call by Mexican civil society, and by the threatened indigenous communities, international observers from foreign NGO's helped to establish a permanent international presence in the threatened towns.

One of them, SIPAZ (International Service for Peace) has been in Chiapas since 1995. "International accompaniment in conflict situations is not unique to Chiapas. There is a long tradition of monitoring human rights in countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador, Sri Lanka, Colombia and Haiti, to mention the most widely known ones."

International observation is "literally a personification of the international concern for human rights. Someone who gives obligatory and visible form, a reminder that violence should not go unnoticed (description of the "International Peace Brigades")."

The government brands as "political interference" or "foreign intervention in domestic matters," these activities that are backed by international conventions and statements that the Mexican government has itself signed, such as the American Human Rights Convention and the International Convention on Political and Civil Rights.

"International conventions are based on the shared belief that respect for human rights is not an exclusively domestic issue. Therefore, the international community has the right to verify whether or not the human rights of peoples in other countries are being respected (Ricardo Carvajal, Director of Sipaz, International Service for Peace).

Jose Saramago, during his visit to Chiapas in March 1998, noted: "The true international community cannot be that which is the result of accords by the states. The true one will be that which we achieve with our dialogues, with our meetings."

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