Mexico: Probe Charges of Police Brutality in Oaxaca

On Monday, July 16, a protest march by members and sympathizers of the Asociación Popular de los Pueblos de Oaxaca (APPO) ended in a violent confrontation with police in the state capital Oaxaca. The police fired tear gas canisters, as both marchers and police attacked each other with stones.

Human Rights Watch has received credible reports that police carried out arbitrary arrests, pulling people from passing cars and buses, and beating those in custody.

“If Governor Ulises Ruiz is committed to law and order in his state, he should ensure that alleged brutality by the police is thoroughly investigated and that those responsible are prosecuted,” said José Miguel Vivanco, Americas director of Human Rights Watch.

The confrontation took place near the public auditorium where the Guelaguetza, an annual cultural festival, is being held this month. The APPO had announced its intention to hold a “popular Guelaguetza” as an alternative to the state-sponsored event.

Police reportedly beat some of those arrested so severely that they needed to be hospitalized. Emeterio Merino Cruz, 43, was taken off a bus and arrested, reportedly because he had dirt on his hands, which police attributed to his having thrown stones. After several hours in police custody, he was transferred to a hospital with injuries that required surgery. He remains hospitalized in critical condition a week later.

State officials in Oaxaca initially reported that a total of 40 people were detained and four required medical attention. The undersecretary for human rights for the state of Oaxaca, Rosario Villalobos, publicly acknowledged that there had been “excessive use of force” by the police and said that “the government will have to take responsibility for” these actions.

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