On October 18th, the National Commission for Human Rights (CNDH in its Spanish acronym) issued a recommendation to the government of Oaxaca, the state’s attorney general’s office, the National Commission for Security (CNS in its Spanish acronym) and the Attorney General’s Office (PGR), for serious violations of human rights in the violent events that occurred in Nochixtlan, Oaxaca, on June 16th, 2016. The said facts resulted in a toll of seven people killed, 453 civilians with physical injuries (45 of them by firearm) and 106 in uniform wounded (four of them shot).

The CNDH accredited the excessive use of public force and that federal and state police committed serious violations of human rights, affecting even third parties who were not actively participating in demonstrations against educational reform. This in consequence “of an operation improperly designed, prepared, coordinated and executed, in which the protocols of action were not fully observed, particularly as regards the legitimate use of force and the need to prioritize the use of mechanisms and non-violent techniques, before using force against the population.”

The national ombudsman, Luis Raul González Perez, said to the media that for an approximate period of 12 hours an operation was carried out “that could well be considered as an example of what should not be police actions of this nature”, in the populations of Nochixtlan, Huitzo and Hacienda Blanca and Viguera. He commented on the other hand that it was confirmed that some of the demonstrators carried firearms and that guns were used against those in uniform.

Gonzalez Perez also informed that the investigation of almost 16 months that led to these conclusions was marked by lack of real and effective cooperation on the part of the authorities involved and those in charge of the criminal investigation of the events, show “the lack of will so that the truth is known and responsibilities are feigned.”

For more information in Spanish:

Efectivos federales y estatales cometieron graves violaciones en Nochixtlán: CNDH (La Jornada, 19 de octubre de 2017)

Policía federal no fue responsable de muertes en Nochixtlán; policías fueron víctimas (Animal Política, 19 de octubre de 2017)

Recomendación No.7VG/2017 (CNDH, octubre de 2017)

Comunicado de prensa (CNDH, 18 de octubre de 2017)

For more information from SIPAZ:

Oaxaca/Guerrero: Balean autobús de víctimas de Nochixtlán (28 de julio de 2017)

Oaxaca: Persisten agresiones y hostigamientos hacia víctimas de Nochixtlán (24 de abril de 2017)

Oaxaca: Comité de Víctimas de Nochixtlán denuncia “intento de homicidio” contra dos de sus integrantes

Oaxaca: Organizaciones de Derechos Humanos presentan informe sobre represión en Nochixtlán (11 de julio de 2016)