The Montiel and Cabrera case

In May 1999, Mexican environmentalists Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera were pursued and detained by a convoy of soldiers who had invaded their community in the Mexican state of Guerrero. They were likely targeted for their activism against prominent logging interests in their communities, activism that ultimately led to the suspension of forest exploitation in several communities in the region, and to wide recognition for Montiel.

They were held incommunicado and tortured over several days in military installations until they signed confessions to marijuana cultivation and illegal arms possession. Despite clear evidence that the men were forced to confess and that the remaining evidence was planted, they were convicted of narcotics and weapons charges and sentenced to prison where they remained in spite of numerous legal attempts to win their release. In November 2001, President Fox issued an executive order for their release.

Montiel and Cabrera were represented by the Mexico City-based Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez Human Rights Center (Prodh). Until she left the Prodh at the end of 2000, Digna Ochoa served as their attorney. She was murdered on October 19, 2001, a few weeks before Fox ordered their release. Although Human Rights First applauds the release of Montiel and Cabrera, it is noteworthy that Fox’s move seems to have required the pressure stemming from the tragedy of Digna’s death coupled with the high profile nature of the case she had taken. Yet there are an unknown number of cases in Mexico of defendants like Montiel and Cabrera who find themselves unable to procure justice in a system where there is failure to guarantee access to counsel, freedom from torture and coercion, and a fair hearing before a judge. These and other cases are outlined in the appendix of Legalized Injustice.