On 23 September, the Robert F. Kennedy center, headquartered in Washington, D.C., announced that it would grant the Robert F. Kennedy Human-Rights Prize to the director of the Tlachinollan Mountain Center for Human Rights, Abel Barrera Hernández. The director receives the prize “for his energetic efforts to put an end to the abuse of human rights that results from the impunity enjoyed by the military and narcotraffickers.” The Robert F. Kennedy Human-Rights Prize was established in 1984 to honor brave and innovative human-rights defenders across the globe who resist injustice, often placing themselves at personal risk for so doing.
In other news, on 23 September, José Francisco Blake Mora, secretary of governance, assured legislators that the federal government will observe the sentence handed down by the Inter-American Court on Human Rights (IACHR) regarding the case of Rosendo Radilla and will send a proposal to the Senate regarding reform of the Military Justice Code. Given that this was one of the most-frequent questions posed by PT, PRD, and PRI senators present, the government-official assured that the government will follow the demands made by the IACHR which demand that the Mexican State modify legislation so as to allow soldiers accused of rights-violations to be judged in civil courts rather than military ones.
Finally, two events that will be carried out in the state of Guerrero this October should here be mentioned. From 8 to 12 October will be held the 2010 Indigenous Social Forum, to be held in the Intercultural University of the State of Guerrero, in the community of La Cienaga, municipality of Malinaltepec. Beyond giving space to discussion- and analysis-tables, there will be held workshops to improve practices and promote the exchange of knowledge, during which time different organizations will be able to share the projects, expeiences, methods, and techniques that have strengthened and consolidated their work, in addition to spaces dedicated to the presentation of artistic and cultural creation. Later, between 13 and 16 October, there will be held the XV anniversary of the Communal Police in its headquarters of San Luis Acatlán. This event will include discussion-tables, presentation of books, videos, and photographs, a communal market, an exchange of criollo seeds, popular dance, and artistic and cultural participation.
For more information (in Spanish):
The Code of Military Justice will be modified: Blake (La Jornada, 23 September)
Soldiers who violate human rights will be judged in civil courts (Centro Prodh, 23 September)
Indigenous Social Forum Weblog
Invitation to the XV Anniversary of the Communal Police
Para más información de SIPAZ:
sipazen.wordpress.com 