Mexico has to improve its human rights policies

Almost 30 years after the creation of the National Human Rights Commission and 20 years since the institutional became autonomous after a 1999 constitutional reform, Mexico 's journey towards the respect of human rights is still in process. At the moment, Mexico has several pending issues in regards to everyday violence against women , journalists , social activists , as well as the enforced disappearance of hundreds of people and the ungovernability inside prisons .

After five years at the CNDH , Luis Raúl González Pérez will leave his position on November 15.

From his perspective, the ombudsperson told EL UNIVERSAL that it “hasn't been easy” to maintain the CNDH's autonomy . Luis Raúl González also said that he faced “storms and hurricanes” for the accusations the CNDH has made during the administrations of Enrique Peña Nieto and Andrés Manuel López Obrador in regards to the Interior Security Law , the deaths in Tlatlaya , the creation of the National Guard, and the suggestions about the operation of daycares .

This week, the Senate will have to appoint the person that will lead the human rights commission . Last Thursday, after to rounds of voting, none of the contenders received enough votes, therefore, there will be another round of voting on Tuesday, a mechanism that was criticized for being scarcely transparent because legislators didn't explain the criteria used to reject several candidates or why certain people made it to the final phase.

The protection of human rights was established in the Constitution but there is a lot of work to do before it becomes a reality. For the governments at all levels, the recommendations issued by the CNDH and local commissions become unwanted indicators that are first discredited, before being accepted and corrected.

Therefore, authorities have to stop avoiding the recommendations and start showing support to the human rights commission , as well as stop trying to interfere with its decisions. This won't be complicated if the government is interested in consolidating the human rights culture in Mexico .

gm