UN Human Rights on the transfer of the National Guard to the Army in Mexico: “The security forces should be subordinated to the civil authorities”

The interim United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Nada Al-Nashif, expressed her concern on Friday about the decision of the Mexican Congress to cede control of the National Guard to the Ministry of National Defense.

Al-Nashif’s reaction came after the approval by the Mexican Senate of a package of legislative reforms transferring the operational, budgetary and administrative control of the National Guard, whose civilian nature is enshrined in the Constitution, to the Secretariat of National Defense, run exclusively by the military.

“The reforms leave Mexico without a civilian police force at the federal level, further consolidating the already prominent role of the Armed Forces in public security in Mexico. Human rights mechanisms have made it clear that the Armed Forces should only intervene in public security temporarily, in exceptional circumstances, as a last resort, and always under the effective supervision of independent civilian bodies“, he claimed.

The Acting High Commissioner recalled that, despite the constant increase in the militarization of the Mexican security forces since 2006, this situation did not lead to a lasting reduction in crime, but instead caused an increase in reports of serious human rights violations by the security forces and the Armed Forces.

“The security forces should be subordinate to the civilian authorities. It is worrying that the approved reforms do not include any provision guaranteeing civilian oversight of the Ministry of National Defense, which raises additional human rights concerns, including the surrender of accounts,” he said.

Al-Nashif called on the Mexican authorities to enhance “civilian oversight in the security sector, in line with human rights standards.”

The interim High Commissioner described as “very limited” the participation and public debates prior to the approval of the reform by the members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

He also expressed concern about other ongoing initiatives aimed at further increasing the militarization of the security forces, including a recent proposal to reform the Constitution to allow the use of the Armed Forces in public security functions until 2028.