TheNewsMexico.com
December 14, 2001

PACHUCA, Hidalgo - The increasing presence of the military in areas of law enforcement will not solve the country's safety problems, a top human rights official said.

National Human Rights Commission President Jose Luis Soberanes said the military should only take over the role of the police in exceptional cases, such as in the fight against narco-trafficking.

Soberanes' statement came in response to last weekend 's announcement the army would participate in efforts to curb the rising tide of kidnapping in the country. The decision was made at the National Meeting of Prosecutors and establishes collaboration between the National Defense Secretariat, the Public Safety Secretariat, the Federal Attorney General's Office (PGR) and the 32 regional Attorney General's Offices.

According to the PGR, there are 57 kidnapping gangs operating nationwide and Mexico has the third highest kidnapping rate in Latin America, behind Colombia and Brazil.

But, Soberanes is not the only one opposing the military's new role. Non-governmental organizations, such as the U.S.-based Human Rights Watch, said the military's record of illegal detentions and torture adds to the country's problems, instead of solving them.

Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador also opposes the decision, saying there should be a clear line between the jurisdiction of the army and police.

"I don't believe the army should do work that corresponds to the police, constitutionally it's not their job," he said.