Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday strongly dismissed criticism of his government’s human rights record.
The report, published Monday, said there were credible reports in Mexico of unlawful or arbitrary killings by police, military and other officials; enforced disappearance by government agents; as well as torture and inhumane treatment by security forces.
The report also stated that “impunity and extremely low prosecution rates remained a problem for all crimes, including human rights violations and corruption”, and criticized violence against journalists in Mexico.
Asked about the report at a press conference, Lopez Obrador dismissed it, saying “they are lying”, noting that the US “believes it is the government of the world”.
“It’s not worth getting upset about, that’s just how they are,” said Lopez Obrador, who will meet with former US Secretary of State John Kerry in Mexico later on Tuesday. The report “is not true, they are liars.”
Lopez Obrador has resisted recent US criticism of his security record, which has come under scrutiny since the kidnapping of four US citizens in northern Mexico earlier this month. Two of them were later found dead.
The leftist president, who says he is rooting out corruption and impunity in Mexico, has argued his country is safer than the US – despite a much higher murder rate – and criticized US efforts to prevent dangerous drugs from entering the United States.
