Mexican Human Rights Commission is ineffective, says report

Human Rights Watch released a damning report today, calling Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission ‘ineffective’ and ‘disappointing’.

‘When it comes to actually securing remedies and promoting reforms to improve Mexico’s dismal human rights record, the CNDH’s performance has been disappointing,’ reads the report, which also points out that the Commission’s failures hasn’t been due to a lack of funding.

‘The CNDH’s 2007 budget of approximately US$73 million is by far the largest of any ombudsman’s office in the Americas and one of the largest in the world. It has over 1,000 employees, including knowledgeable and experienced professionals who are genuinely committed to promoting human rights.’

The problem lies in the Commission’s own policies and actions, and although it has carried out some thorough investigations, it fails to follow up.

Click here for the report and here for the NYT piece