Un-Prisonment - Releasing the Wrongfully Convicted

Since our last report in January 2018, and beside our regular activities of investigation and legal support to the victims on a daily basis - thanks to our team of dedicated volunteers from different countries and locations around the world - En Vero has participated in one major event in Mexico in August 2018.

M. David Bertet, President of En Vero, was invited to participate in the 2018 audiences of the International Tribunal of Conscience, as member of the ethical jury in charge of reviewing the cases of Human Rights violations which were presented between Aug. 11th and 18th in various cities of the Mexican Republic. To be sure, México remains one of the most violent states in the world, due to lack of safeguarding human and political rights. 

The "Mexican Chapter" of the ITC was headed by the National Lawyers Guild (NLG-USA) to validate and follow up the compliance of the 2015 Tribunal Ruling held in New York. It was accompanied and coordinated by: Asociación Mexicana de Abogados del Pueblo Guerrero (AMAP-Guerrero), Centro de Derechos Humanos Minerva Bello- Guerrero, Coordinadora Nacional Plan de Ayala-Movimiento Nacional-Puebla (CNPA-MN), Centro de Derechos Humanos de la Universidad de Dayton-Ohio, Asociación Prevención, Capacitación y Defensa del Migrante (PRECADEM AC-CdMx), Colectivo por la Paz en Colombia desde México (COLPAZ-CdMx), Asociación de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos y Víctimas de Violaciones a los Derechos Humanos en México (AFADEM-FEDEFAM), Comisión Ciudadana de Derechos Humanos del Noroeste AC, Asamblea de las Diásporas-Confederación de la Diáspora Peruana (CDP-PERUALLIANCE), Liga Mexicana por la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos-CdMx, and, of course, En Vero. 

During the audiences, a selected group of renowned jurists, laywers, thinkers, journalists, and human rights activits who composed the ethical jury, listened carefully to the testimonies of different actors and members of the Mexican society: victims of State violence and human rights violations, human rights organizations, students of Chiapas and Ayotzinapa, and academy members. According to our preliminary conclusions, it is beyond any doubt that the constant state of violence in Mexico threatens the human dignity and personal security of those living in this country. Among other things, we saw that institutions of all levels in governance have no diagnosis nor strategy, nor even will, to face generalized and institutional violence. In this context of systemic human rights violations and violence, the State needs to strengthen its efforts to assure a significant and promising political and human rights framework, to the citizenship eager to exercise free will and freedom, free of intimidation, inhibition or coercion in search of justice.

In the following weeks the participant organizations will meet again to determine a final ITC Ruling or Report. The NLG will be present in the Tribunal new hearing on November, coordinating and consolidating the consultation and observation with all organizations involved in this effort.

Moreover, we were able to raise 9,994$ (CAN) thanks to all of you who participated in our second fundraising campaign with GlobalGiving. Since our previous report in April 2018, we have not received any additional donation. At the time, all of the amount of our past donations had already been used. Which is why the following report will closely resemble the one already published in April 2018.

• Office expenses (including mailing, printing, website maintenance): $1050.41 CAD
• Travel expenses: $4311.61 CAD 
• Work meetings: $211 CAD. This section includes the rent of work spaces for our meetings.
• Professional fees (Investigation, translation): $203 CAD (unchanged) 
• Direct help to the victims: $323 CAD. In this section, we take into account the expenses aimed at providing immediate physical and psychological assistance to the victims.