CPJ, Espacio OSC call on Mexican federal mechanism to solve failures in protective measures for journalists

The Committee to Protect Journalists joined Espacio OSC, a coalition of Mexican civil society organizations, in a joint statement expressing deep concern over irregularities in the implementation of basic protection measures for journalists by the Mexican Federal Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists.

In 2012, the federal mechanism was created in response to rapidly escalating deadly violence against journalists and human rights defenders in Mexico. The agency operates under the auspices of the Mexican federal Interior Secretariat and provides protective measures to journalists and human rights defenders at risk, including relocation, safe houses and panic buttons. It provides protection to over 2,000 individuals, including approximately 500 journalists.

In recent weeks, CPJ and Espacio OSC have documented failures in the implementation of basic protection measures for at least 10 journalists, most of whom have received death threats. Among the reported problems were government-issued vehicles that presented mechanical failures and were not replaced, making it difficult for bodyguards to carry out their duty protecting journalists they were assigned to by the federal government. 

Mexico is the deadliest country for journalists in the western hemisphere and ranks eighth on, according to CPJ data on countries where killers of journalists are most likely to go unpunished.

The statement calls on the mechanism to take definitive steps to resolve reported issues immediately and strengthen its protection of journalists.

Read the full statement here in Spanish, with options for English translation.