Mexican President Andres Obrador announced Thursday that he would release prisoners who have been tortured, saying such “medieval practices” must end.
“We don’t want torture in Mexico. No one deserves to be tortured,” Lopez Obrador told reporters.
He said cases would be decided based on international standards for investigating alleged torture.
A presidential decree will be signed next week and eligible prisoners in federal prisons will be freed before September 15, Lopez Obrador said.
“We cannot continue with these medieval practices, completely contrary to the most basic human rights,” he said.
According to international rights groups, torture is widely practised in Mexico to extract confessions and other information.
Prisoners incarcerated for 10 years who have yet to be sentenced for minor crimes and those aged 65 and above with chronic diseases will also be among those eligible for release.
There are around 220,000 inmates in Mexico, of whom more than 94,500 have yet to be sentenced, according to figures presented by Lopez Obrador.
(AFP)
