Rights Group Assails Mexico Army Probe of Chiapas Deaths

A single soldier, who later committed suicide, killed eight civilians at a government clinic during an Indian uprising in the southern state of Chiapas last year, according to a Mexican army investigation into alleged atrocities that was severely criticized Wednesday by a leading international human rights group.

The rights group’s report, based on information provided by the army, questioned the seriousness of military investigations into allegations of human rights violations during and after the 10 days of fighting in January, 1994, that left at least 145 dead.

The report is severely critical of army investigations into four instances of alleged atrocities in Chiapas.

“You can see a serious effort to exonerate Mexican soldiers from penal or criminal responsibility,” said Jose Miguel Vivanco, executive director of Human Rights Watch/Americas and author of the report. “The investigations were flawed, not serious.”

A Mexican Foreign Ministry official denied the report’s accusations, noting that the Defense Ministry’s willingness to share information about the probes indicates the government’s commitment to keeping the public informed.

The probe that critics assailed most was the inquiry into the deaths of 11 people who were found in a mass grave near the government clinic in Ocosingo, one of several county seats taken over by the Zapatista National Liberation Army on Jan. 1, 1994, and the scene of the harshest conflict during 10 days of fighting before a cease-fire.

The army investigation found that three of the victims had been killed in cross-fire between soldiers and the Zapatistas. The other eight, according to the investigation, were killed by a single officer, 2nd Lt. Arturo Jimenez Morales.

The finding was based on information from 19 soldiers who were present, ignoring the testimony of 45 civilian witnesses, according to the human rights report.