PRESS RELEASE

No. 19/03

PRESS REPORTS REGARDING

ALLEGED DECISION OF THE IACHR 

In light of press reports alluding to an alleged decision on petition 12.229 (Digna Ochoa and others) before the Inter-American Commission, this organ wishes to inform that it continues to examine said petition in accordance with the provisions contained in the American Convention on Human Rights, its Statute, and its Rules of Procedure.

The IACHR considers it timely to reiterate what it said in press release No. 1/03 of January 10, 2003:

Neither the IACHR nor the international experts are responsible for determining the circumstances of Attorney Digna Ochoa’s death or for identifying or prosecuting possible perpetrators as these tasks are solely within the purview of the Mexican authorities.

The Inter-American Commission further informs that on June 16, 2003 it conveyed to the Government of Mexico and the petitioners the “Report on the Review of Technical Evidence in the Criminal Investigation of the Death of Digna Ochoa y Plácido by the Office of the Special Prosecutor of the Office of the Prosecutor General for the Federal District of Mexico”.  The aforesaid document was submitted to the IACHR by Dr. Pedro Díaz Romero pursuant to the terms of reference for the technical review agreed by the parties in said matter.  The report of Dr. Díaz Romero also contains reports by Messrs. Alan J. Voth and María Dolores Morcillo Méndez in the areas of ballistics and forensic pathology, respectively.

          The above-mentioned report and all documents submitted by the parties in accordance with the rules on processing individual petitions shall be evaluated by the Inter-American Commission when it adopts its decision.

Santiago A. Canton

Executive Secretary

Washington, D.C., August 1, 2003