were the subject of a recent assessment by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the subject.
12.An essential element for preventing torture and ill-treatment is the existence of a fully developed system of independent inspection
visits to all places where people may be deprived of their liberty. For that reason, the first section of this report analyses the
development of the national preventive mechanism in Mexico and the safeguards that must be in place in order for it to fulfil its
functions.
13.The second section of the report examines Mexico’s legal framework from the perspective of torture prevention. The lack of an
adequate legal framework that safeguards the rights of persons deprived of their liberty may give rise to situations that are conducive
to acts of torture and cruel treatment. Such safeguards are often related to legal guarantees of due process and other human rights,
such as the right to liberty and the prohibition of arbitrary detention, both of which fall within the purview of other United Nations
bodies. However, they may also be of interest to the Subcommittee as they may have a bearing on situations that can lead to torture
and cruel treatment, and their examination may thus be useful in order to prevent such acts.
14.In later sections of the report, the Subcommittee looks at the specific situation of persons deprived of their liberty in various
settings in the light of safeguards which the Subcommittee believes would, if applied properly, help to reduce the risk of ill-treatment
of detained persons. The Subcommittee makes recommendations for changes that might be introduced in order to improve the
situations encountered and ensure the development of a coherent system of safeguards in law and in practice.
15.Owing to the limited duration of the visit and to Mexico’s large size, the delegation had to make a qualitative selection with regard
to both the states and the places of detention to be visited. This report presents conclusions and recommendations that are based only
on the places actually visited by the delegation, it being understood that the findings might also apply to other places or states not
visited, which should be of particular use to the national authorities in achieving the aims and purposes of the Optional Protocol:
prevention of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The Subcommittee visited the Federal District and the states of
Mexico, Jalisco, Nuevo León and Oaxaca. The selection criteria were based on a preliminary analysis by the Subcommittee
secretariat of conditions in the country’s jails, prisons and other detention or custody facilities.
16.During the visit to Mexico, the delegation observed the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in various types of
institutions, took note of the findings and held private interviews with detainees in 12 police and judicial facilities, 7 prisons, 1 military
prison, 2 detention facilities for minors and 2 psychiatric hospitals.
17.In addition to visiting places of detention and custody, the delegation communicated with public authorities and members of civil
society in order to get a picture of the legal and institutional framework underpinning the criminal justice system, the police, the prison
system and other institutions with the authority to hold persons in custody. The delegation also met with members of the national
preventive mechanism, the National Human Rights Commission and the state human rights commissions in the states visited.
18.At the conclusion of the visit, the delegation presented its preliminary observations orally to the Mexican authorities. In accordance
with article 16 of the Optional Protocol, both those preliminary observations and this report on the visit are confidential.
19.The Subcommittee has analysed the transparency and information access model that Mexico has implemented at the
national level, which in the Subcommittee’s view is an example of legislation and practice to be emulated elsewhere in
the world. This mechanism, which is general in nature, could be a useful means of providing people deprived of their
liberty with access to statistical, budget and other information relating to detention or the prison situation. In line with
this policy of transparency and in accordance with article 16 of the Optional Protocol, the Subcommittee recommends
that Mexico should make this report public, as other countries visited by the Subcommittee (Sweden and Maldives) have
done. Making the report public would undoubtedly serve as an additional mechanism for preventing torture and illtreatment by enabling widespread dissemination of the report ’ s recommendations, which are aimed both at federal and
state institutions, at the national preventive mechanism and, indirectly, at human rights commissions and civil society
organizations.
I.Facilitation of the visit and cooperation
20.The Subcommittee is grateful to federal, state and local authorities for the wide latitude and close cooperation afforded the
delegation that visited the country. The delegation was provided with information and documents that were essential to achieving the
objectives of the visit. Members of the delegation held productive meetings with various authorities, who showed great willingness to
cooperate. The delegation had some difficulty in accessing certain places of detention, especially investigative or pre-charge detention
(arraigo) facilities at the federal level (Office of the Assistant Attorney-General in the Federal District) and at the state level (in
Jalisco), owing mainly to communication problems that delayed access. However, those difficulties were overcome thanks to the
cooperation of the focal points.
21.The Subcommittee wishes to express its appreciation for all the assistance provided by the national and state focal points and all
the authorities involved in the visit. The Subcommittee would also like to thank the national preventive mechanism and the various
state-level human rights commissions for the interest they showed in the visit and for all the information and documents provided while
it was under way.
22.The Subcommittee is grateful for the support received from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights (OHCHR) in Mexico. The cooperation of the OHCHR team was crucial to the success of this visit.
23.Members of the Subcommittee had very open and fruitful dialogues with various sectors of Mexican society, including
representatives of both domestic and international NGOs, from which the Subcommittee received a great deal of factual and
analytical information, before, during and after the visit, all of which proved very useful in achieving the visit’s objectives.