URGENT ACTION MEXICO

URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA

To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa09208.pdf

09 April 2008

UA 92/08 - Fear of torture or ill-treatment/ legal concern

MEXICO
Miguel Angel Tornez Hernandez (m), aged 25
His family

Miguel Angel Tornez Hernandez was arrested and tortured by
state judicial police in Ayutla de los Libres municipality,
Guerrero state, on 2 April, as part of the investigation
into a robbery and murder of four police officers and a
public official. Before his arrest, several members of his
family were also detained for one day and one of his sisters
was tortured. He is at risk of further torture or other ill-
treatment, and could face an unfair trial. His family may
also be in danger.

On 31 March four police officers and a public official were
killed near the community of El Salto, municipality of
Ayutla de los Libres, as they were distributing government
development funds targeted at families and communities in
need. According to the authorities, they were shot by a
group of men who stole 600,000 pesos (just under US$57,000)
as well as the officers' weapons. Miguel Angel Tornez says
that he was driving past at the time when his vehicle was
hijacked by the attackers. According to his testimony, he
was forced to witness the attack and then to drive the
attackers away from the crime scene. When his pickup truck
broke down, he was beaten by the armed men and pushed down a
ravine. He managed to make his way home, but he had suffered
some injuries, for which he sought medical attention the
following day.

On 1 April, police officers went to Miguel Angel Tornez's
house in Ayutla and arbitrarily arrested his mother, his
aunt, his two sisters and three of their small children.
They were held at a local police station in order to force
them to reveal Miguel Angel Tornez's whereabouts. One of the
two sisters, Yesenia Tornez Hernandez, reported that five
State Judicial Police officers (Policia Investigadora
Ministerial, PIM) tied her to a chair, then beat her,
threatened and blindfolded her before placing and a plastic
bag over her head in order to force her to tell them where
to find her brother. She and the rest of the family were
released later that day.

When Miguel Angel Tornez found out what had happened, he
went voluntarily to the PIM offices in order to give his
testimony about the attack. He was told to return the
following day in to order give his witness statement.
However, when he returned to the PIM offices on 2 April, he
was detained without charge. According to a family member
who was allowed to visit him soon after he was detained,
Miguel Angel Tornez alleged that he had been blindfolded and
given electric shocks in order to extract a confession to
his involvement in the crime. He was then placed in arraigo
(a form of pre-trial administrative detention for up to 90
days authorized by judges). The prosecutor's office
allocated Miguel Angel Tornez a defense lawyer, preventing a
local human rights organization representing him. An
investigation by the State Human Rights Commission confirmed
his torture in a medical report and a local court ruled in
an urgent habeas corpus hearing (diligencia de exhibicion de
persona) filed by his family that he had been tortured by
being threatened and punched, mostly in the head.

On 5 April, while still in arraigo, Miguel Angel Tornez was
moved to another arraigo detention facility run by the
Federal Attorney General's Office (Procuraduria General de
la Republica, PGR) in Mexico City, without informing his
family. Arraigo severely restricts access to the outside
world, in effect preventing him from communicating with his
family or the local human rights organization. The PGR has
reportedly opened a parallel federal investigation on the
basis of the robbery of federal funds and possession of
illegal weapons.

Amnesty International is concerned that the investigation
into Miguel Angel Tornez's case may not be conducted fairly
and impartially. The UN Group on Arbitrary Detention has
claimed that arraigo detention is a form of arbitrary
detention, which creates an environment conducive to
coercion and ill-treatment.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- expressing concern at the reported arbitrary detention and
torture of Miguel Angel Tornez Hernandez and members of his
family, including Yesenia Tornez Hernandez, by State
Judicial Police officers on 31 March and 2 April;
- calling for a full, prompt and impartial investigation
into both incidents and for those responsible to be brought
to justice;
- calling for the authorities to guarantee that Miguel Angel
Tornez Hernandez will not be tortured or ill-treated, and
that he will be promptly charged with a recognized criminal
offense or released;
- calling for the authorities to ensure the safety of his
family and give them protection measures, in accordance with
their wishes;
- calling for authorities to ensure that all testimony
extracted under torture and other ill-treatment is ruled
inadmissible as evidence;
- recognize the authorities' duty to investigate and
prosecute those responsible for the murder of four police
officers and a civilian official during the robbery of 31
March, but reminding them of their obligation to uphold
without reservation the rights of criminal suspects and
victims in accordance with international human rights
standards.

APPEALS TO:
Attorney General of the Republic
Lic. Eduardo Medina-Mora Icaza
Procurador General de la Republica
Procuraduria General de la Republica
Av. Paseo de la Reforma nº 211-213, Piso 16
Col. Cuauhtemoc, Delegacion Cuauhtemoc,
Mexico D.F., C.P. 06500
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 55 5346 0908 (if someone answers please say "me da tono de fax, por favor")
Salutation: Dear Attorney General

Governor of Guerrero
Lic. Zeferino Torreblanca Galindo
Gobernador del Estado de Guerrero
Palacio de Gobierno, Edificio Centro, piso 2, Ciudad de los Servicios
CP 39075, Chilpancingo, Guerrero
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 747 471 9956
Salutation: Dear Governor

Attorney General of Guerrero
Lic. Eduardo Murueta Urrutia
Procurador del Estado de Guerrero,
Carretera Nacional Mexico-Acapulco Km. 6+300
Tramo Chilpancingo-Petaquillos,
Chilpancingo 39090, Guerrero
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 747 472 2328
Salutation: Dear Attorney

COPIES TO:
Human rights organization:
Centro de Derechos Humanos de la Montana "Tlachinollan" AC.,
Calle Mina, no. 77, Col. Centro, Tlapa de Comonfort,
C.P. 41304, Guerrero
MEXICO

State human rights commission
Comision de Defensa de los Derechos Humanos del Estado de Guerrero (Coddehum)
Avda. Juarez, Esq. Galo Soberon y Parra, Col. Centro
39000, Chilpancingo, Guerrero
MEXICO

Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Casamitjana
Embassy of Mexico
1911 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington DC 20006
Fax: 1 202 728 1698
Email: mexembusa@sre.gob.mx

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 21 May 2008.

----------------------------------
Tip of the Month:
Use shortcuts: Do whatever is necessary to make your
letter writing as quick and easy as possible. This way,
letters will not be put off and they can be sent out sooner.
Start by making a generic file for each type of concern;
paragraphs on torture, the death penalty, disappearances,
denial of medical care and so on, can be copied into your
working file and edited as needed.

** POSTAGE RATES **
Within the United States:
$0.26 - Postcards
$0.41 - Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To Mexico and Canada:
$0.69 - Postcards
$0.69 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)
To all other destination countries:
$0.90 - Postcards
$0.90 - Airmail Letters and Cards (up to 1 oz.)

Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots movement
that promotes and defends human rights.

This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
contact information and stop action date (if applicable).
Thank you for your help with this appeal.

Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
600 Pennsylvania Ave SE 5th fl
Washington DC 20003
Email: uan@aiusa.org
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566

----------------------------------
END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
----------------------------------