The Human Rights Office in Mexico urges the elected government to comply with the Nelson Mandela Rules

Mexico’s prison system needs a policy that guarantees decent conditions for people deprived of their liberty, since it currently has flaws, including inadequate conditions of detention, overcrowding, problems of self-government and corruption, rigid administrative isolation schemes and deficiencies in reintegration policies, in addition to abuse of pretrial detention.

In this context and on the occasion of the Nelson Mandela International Day -celebrated every July 18-, the Office in Mexico of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights called on Thursday the federal and state authorities who will assume their positions on October 1 to comply with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisonersalso known as Nelson Mandela Rules.

A watershed for a forgotten population

The president-elect of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, referred during her campaign to the adoption of the “Comprehensive Plan for the Strengthening of the Penitentiary System”, which according to the UN Office “could mean a a watershed in favor of a historically forgotten sector of the population”.

Prisons in Mexico house mainly people in poverty and marginalization and their vulnerability is increased by the difficult conditions of detention, the Office recalled, stressing that this reality gives greater force to its appeal.

According to national and international human rights organizations, the The existence and abuse of informal pretrial detention exacerbates the challenges facing the prison system in Mexico.

Women prisoners

These specialized entities have also expressed a special concern for the conditions of women deprived of liberty.

Instances such as the National Human Rights Commission and the Federal Public Defender’s Institute have detected, for example, the Violation of human rights in the federal prison for women in the state of Moreloswhich has led to the deaths of 15 women in the past three years, some of them apparently by suicide.

Implementation of recommendations

For these reasons, the UN Office insisted on the importance of the Plan announced by the next Mexican president comply with the provisions of the Nelson Mandela Rulesas with the National Law on Criminal Enforcement.

He also urged his government to ensure that effective implementation of the recommendations of national and international human rights bodies.

Finally, the Office recognized the Mexican State’s openness to international scrutiny and cooperation, as well as its acceptance in recent days of the recommendations regarding the situation of persons deprived of liberty formulated during the Universal Periodic Review before him Human Rights Council from the ONU.

He also reiterated the UN’s willingness to provide assistance and technical cooperation to ensure compliance with national and international human rights regulations.