* Report: Military bans contact with press

MEXICO CITY (AP) The armed forces of Mexico, which are taking an
increasingly prominent role in law enforcement, have ordered
soldiers to avoid public comment or contact with the news media, the
daily newspaper Reforma reported Thursday.

Reforma said Gen. Enrique Cervantes Aguirre issued the memorandum on
Aug. 6, a day after the weekly magazine Proceso published a report
about the extent of contact between military officers and drug
traffickers.

A spokeswoman for the Defense Secretariat said Thursday it had no
information about the report.

Reforma quoted the memorandum as saying: ``It is an order that
strict measures are taken so that military personnel avoid contact
with the communications media.''

It said the memorandum also banned reporters from visiting military
bases.

For decades, Mexico's military kept largely out of the public eye.
But in the past two years, it has assumed a major role in combating
drug trafficking and two small rebel groups. It even has
participated in regular police duties in some parts of Mexico City.

The military's pride was shaken in February when Gen. Jesus
Gutierrez Rebollo, a soldier named to lead Mexico's antinarcotics
efforts, was arrested on charges of being on the pay of a top drug
trafficker.

Since then, officials have admitted they have investigated or
prosecuted several other soldiers to corruption.

Human rights groups also have accused the military of making illegal
arrests and torturing suspects in efforts to root out guerrilla
bands in the states of Chiapas, Oaxaca and Guerrero.


(c) 1997, Associated Press