The following information on the treatment of PRD members in Mexico adds to that already found in the Research Directorate's Issue Paper entitled Mexico:Selected Issues of Internal Flight Alternatives of February 2001.

In a 26 March 2001 telephone interview with the Research Directorate, an officer in charge of human rights at the National Executive Committee Office of the PRD in Mexico City (Comité Ejecutivo Nacional del Partido de la Revolución Democratica, PRD) stated that she is only aware of one case in which a PRD leader has been the subject of recent harassment. She stated that a leader of the PRD in Nayarit, José Luis González López, as well as his son, were being followed by judicial agents in September, October and November 2000. She said that González López had been the subject of harassment because he had lived in Russia and was perceived to be a communist; he had also been accused of criminal activity for setting fire to his house.

The officer stated that since the election of Pablo Salazar of the Alliance for Chiapas in August 2000, the situation for PRD members in Chiapas has been peaceful.

Additional and/or corroborating information on the case of González López, and on the situation in Chiapas, could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Reference

Comité Ejecutivo Nacional del Partido de la Revolución Democratica (PRD), Mexico City. 26 March 2001. Telephone interview with an officer of the human rights office.

Additional Sources Consulted

IRB Databases

Latin American Regional Reports: Mexico and NAFTA Report (LARR) [London]. 1998-March 2001

LEXIS/NEXIS

World News Connection (WNC)

Internet sites including:

Amnesty International

Excélsior [Mexico]. Search Engine

Global Exchange

Human Rights Watch

La Jornada [Mexico]. Search Engine

Partido de la Revolución Democrática (PRD)

Weekly Update on the Americas [New York]

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