IACHR expresses concern over approval of judicial reform

Mexico City. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) expressed its grave concern on Thursday over the approval of the reform of the Judicial Branch and warned of the possible impacts on the right of access to justice, on guarantees of judicial independence and on the rule of law.

“The IACHR recognizes the importance of a reform that strengthens the judicial system in Mexico,” the Organization of American States (OAS) body stated in a statement, in which it stated that “a constitutional reform of this magnitude must be conducted within the framework of a broad, duly informed and participatory dialogue that activates, in good faith, the institutional mechanisms for citizen participation.”

Noting that Mexico continues to face challenges in access to justice, resulting in high levels of impunity and corruption, the Commission urged “State authorities to ensure that any judicial reform is carried out in accordance with the American Convention on Human Rights and inter-American standards on judicial independence and access to justice, and that it responds to the needs of its population for prompt and effective justice, without discrimination.”

Likewise, “in the face of conflict and public protests, it calls for the guarantee of instances of real dialogue, which ensure the participation of all interested sectors.”

He said he had received “a great deal of information from civil society organizations, experts and justice operators on the possible effects that would result from this constitutional reform.”

The IACHR noted that it had been drawn to the fact that “the haste of these profound changes could have negative consequences for the guarantees of suitability and meritocratic access to the judicial career.”

The criticisms heard by the Commission also point out that the reform “does not start from a diagnosis of the real deficits in access to justice, nor does it consider how the strong presence of organized crime in various areas of the country will impact the popular election processes.”

“Among other issues under discussion, the Commission has learned of the inclusion in the constitutional reform of measures to preserve the identity of judges in cases related to organized crime, referred to by the inter-American system as “faceless judges,” whose use has been declared contrary to the American Convention by the organs of the inter-American system. Likewise, it has noted concerns about the process for the integration of the new Judicial Disciplinary Tribunal, which could compromise its independence, as well as the lack of guarantees of due process in the disciplinary regime.”

The IACHR added that although the State reported on a series of national dialogues to guarantee citizen participation in the reform that took place between February 21 and April 18, 2024, “the IACHR observes that the speed of their processing is preventing the effective consideration of the criticisms of a sector of the citizenry, as demonstrated by the demonstrations of recent weeks.”

The Commission noted that “an adequate appointment and selection process is an essential prerequisite for guaranteeing the independence of the persons operating the justice system” and said that “the selection processes of the disciplinary authorities of the judiciary must also be covered by guarantees of independence.”