the decision of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and ordered the investigation to be
continued until the facts denounced have been clarified;
d)
the State proposed to Mrs. Luz Estela Castro the implementation of a
Security Protocol and put into practice the following measures of protection:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
security infrastructure, consisting of the installation of smoked
(polarized) glass and a code blue system (emergency button) outside
the premises of the Women’s Human Rights Center; as well as the
installation of a camera system and electronic doors;
communication systems. According to the State, since November
2008, “Luz Estela Castro or other beneficiaries have a system of five
cell phones with encryption of data or credit that is renewed monthly,
which remains in operation;
permanent contact, via an emergency number permanently available
with the Secretariats of Public Security of the Federal Government,
the State of Chihuahua and the Municipality of Chihuahua, and
police patrols, implemented jointly in the premises of the Women’s
Human Rights Center;
e)
in addition, the State emphasized that since these measures were
implemented, neither the state nor the federal authorities have received a
formal report from the petitioner regarding any problem or incident;
f)
with regard to recent events and facts involving other human rights
defenders that could create an element of risk, the State argued that the
aforementioned statements by senior public officials “were never intended to
discredit the work carried out by the human rights defender ” and that, on the
contrary, the Government of the State of Chihuahua “has always recognized
the work of members of civil society organizations […],
the erroneous
information disseminated by Mrs. Luz Estela Castro regarding the investigations
in the case of Mrs. Marisela Escobedo was likely to create confusion and
disinformation among the inhabitants of the State of Chihuahua […] for this
reason the General Prosecutor considered it pertinent to clarify and refute the
statements made,” and
g)
as to the situation of human rights defenders in the State of Chihuahua,
the State indicated that, during 2012, the National Human Rights Commission
made no recommendations to the Government.
11.
In addition, the State emphasized that it had implemented various public
policies, both at the state and the federal levels, in favor of human rights defenders,
which “require the request and consent of the potential beneficiaries to avail
themselves of these, something that has not occurred in this case.” Among these
policies it mentioned:
a)
the State of Chihuahua’s Comprehensive Security System for the
Protection of Journalists, which is also applied to human rights defenders at
risk, given its effectiveness. This system, in operation since September 8, 2010,
includes preventive and self-protection measures, as well as a mechanism to
ensure the flow of information and immediate attention by the authorities, who
will determine the actions to be taken in order to safeguard the physical
integrity of the beneficiary. Moreover, it emphasized that “the effectiveness
6