READ/DOWNLOAD OPEN LETTER
Mexico, August 25, 2017
Issue:
We denounce the intimidation and harassment of defender
Jaqueline Campbell
Rubén Ignacio Moreira Valdez
Governor of Coahuila
Víctor Zamora Rodríguez
Interior Secretary of Coahuila
Homero Ramos Gloria
Attorney General of Coahuila
Hugo Gutiérrez Rodríguez
General Coordinato of ‘Fuerza Coahuila’
José Luis Chapa Reséndiz
State Security Commissioner
Last August 21st, defender Jaqueline Campbell Dávila, counselor of the Saltillo Diocese and member of the National Network of Women Human Rights Defenders in Mexico, experienced acts of intimidation and harassment.
Around 1:30 pm that day, an officer belonging to ‘Fuerza Coahuila’1 knelt down for a few minutes by her van, which was parked outside the diocese in downtown Saltillo, and manipulated a device that Jaqueline Campbell was unable to identify.
Whether or not the uniformed officer has taken notes, photographs or in any way altered Jaqueline Campbell’s vehicle, we, the members of the RNDDHM repudiate this maneuver as one of many acts of aggression experienced by the defender as a result of her activities in defense of human rights, and particularly her work as counselor in matters of international human rights to Fray Raúl Vera López, Bishop of the Saltillo Diocese, and widely recognized for his social activism in support of groups in situations of marginalization and inequality.
In this context, we recall that two years ago, Jaqueline Campbell experienced intimidation by top officials of the government of Coahuila aimed at dissuading her from lending legal and general assistance to persons deprived of their freedom in state prisons; her work in their support led her to uncover and denounce a number of acts of torture. Jaqueline has been the target of countless smear campaigns aimed at discrediting her activities, all launched by news media with connections to the state government.
We also wish to point out that in 2016, this Defender Network wrote to the Governor and Attorney General of Coahuila to express our concern for the security and the physical and psychological integrity of Jaqueline Campbell after several slanderous news articles appeared that demeaned and made fun of her work in the defense and promotion of human rights.
Accordingly, the 204 women defenders and journalists from 24 state in Mexico, organized in the RNDDHM, demand that the government of Coahuila:
- Investigate and delineate responsibilities of the masterminds and perpetrators of the acts of intimidation and harassment against defender Jaqueline Campbell;
- Guarantee an end to these acts of violence; and
- Guarantee the defender’s right to defend human rights in conditions of security and equality.
Cordially
National Network of Women Human Rights Defenders in Mexico
1 An elite police corps which, since its formation in 2016, has committed abuses of authority and physical attacks. See: http://www.vanguardia.com.mx/articulo/fuerza-coahuila-acumula-denuncias-desde-su-formacion