RIGHTS PROTESTERS TARGET DRUG-WAR FUNDS FOR MEXICO

MEXICO CITY -- Citing alleged rights abuses by Mexican soldiers
assigned to the drug war, Human Rights Watch urged the Obama
administration Monday to not release tens of millions of dollars in
withheld security aid unless Mexico allows such cases to be tried in
civilian courts.

In a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the
Washington-based group said Mexico's military courts have failed to
bring to justice troops Human Rights Watch holds responsible for a
"rapidly growing number of serious abuses."

Under the $1.4 billion multiyear aid package known as the Merida
initiative, the U.S. government is to withhold a 15 percent portion
until the secretary of state reports that Mexico is meeting
human-rights conditions. One condition is that civilian authorities
are investigating and prosecuting alleged abuses by troops and federal
police "in accordance with Mexican and international law."

The withheld funds so far amount to more than $100 million.

"The Merida initiative provides the Obama administration with an
important opportunity to strengthen U.S.-Mexican drug enforcement and
human rights cooperation," the group's executive director, Kenneth
Roth, said. "To capitalize on this opportunity, however, the Obama
administration should vigorously enforce the human rights requirements
included in the aid package."

The conduct of Mexico's soldiers has attracted growing scrutiny since
Mexican President Felipe Calderon Advertisement launched a
military-led crackdown on drug traffickers two and a half years ago.
He has dispatched 45,000 soldiers to the country's most violent
trafficking zones.

Rights advocates accuse soldiers of torture, rape, illegal arrest and,
in some cases, killings. In Ciudad Juarez and other places, residents
complain that soldiers have burst into their homes without warrants,
made arrests without cause and stolen appliances and food.