Friday, April 17, 2009

Complaints of Abusive Behavior By Troops in Juarez Can Only Be Resolved By The Secretary of Defense

Norte of Juarez reports Chihuahua Governor Jose Reyes Baeza Terrazas yesterday revealed that complaints of abuse by troops engaged in Joint Operation Chihuahua (JOCh, OCCh in Spanish abbreviation) can only be resolved at the desk of Secretary of Defense himself, Guillermo Galvan Galvan, in Mexico City.

Citizens have complained that cases of alleged abuse reported locally result in no action because there is no chain of authority to link a citizen's complaint to local commanders at any operational level. A local Juarez psychiatrist, Jose Francisco Rangel, in an interview with Norte, appearing today, asserted that while collective anxiety in Juarez has diminished with the arrival of military troops to guard the city, and people are beginning to go out into the city for recreation again, those affected by abusive behavior of troops find themselves frustrated by the lack of accountability. He mentioned the case of a female patient who complained to him she was sexually fondled by a soldier at a check point at night.

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