In a report, Amnesty International has accused Mexican authorities of doing little to stop or prosecute widespread human rights abuses, including vicious attacks on journalists and violations by members of the military. Widespread violence against women and the “systematic inequality” faced by indigenous people were also mentioned in the report. The group also noted the plight of tens of thousands of migrants who pass through Mexico on their way to the United States and suffer from abuses including rape, kidnapping and murder. Tens of thousands of people have died in Mexico in drug-related violence since President Felipe Calderón announced a crackdown on drug traffickers after taking office in 2006. Mexican journalist Sanjuana Martínez condemned Calderón’s administration.

Sanjuana Martínez: “It’s a dark period. Mexico is currently going through one of its darkest periods in terms of human rights. The administration of Felipe Calderón has been the administration of the dead. It left us a bloody Mexico, a Mexico that suffers from the consequences. There is great necessity to create a truth commission to examine what happened during this ominous period.”