Recently, the Government of Mexico and several NGOs have embarked on efforts to develop restorative practices in that country.  These reforms have been the result of efforts to:

• increase security and recognize victims’ rights
• foster changes in the Mexican justice system
• include civil society groups in reforming the system.

Government Initiatives

In 2001, the Mexican Delegation to the 10th Session of the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice announced that Mexico had just amended Article 20 of the Constitution to recognize the rights of victims. Under this amendment, victims are now guaranteed the right to: 

• legal assistance
• information about developments in the case
• assistance from the prosecutor’s office
• all information requested
• medical and psychological assistance
• reparation from the offender

Following this announcement, Dr. Maria de la Luz Lima, of the national Office of the Procurador General, spoke to a meeting of attorney generals and judges about the need to create alternative measures for resolving criminal conflicts in Mexico.  She called for the establishment of penal mediation as a fruitful and efficient mechanism. She also asked that prison be reserved for only the most serious offenses. The Mexican justice officials attending this meeting issued a strong call for alternative processes as they recognized that an emphasis on punishment hinders the healing of victims and the reintegration of offenders into society.     

Civil Society Initiatives 

NGOs are also working to introduce restorative justice initiatives into practice. The Fundación Centro de Atención para Victimas del delito (CENAVID) (Foundation Center for the Attention of Victims of Crime) was founded in 1993 to provide resources to crime victims, especially women and children. In recent years, CENAVID has added promotion of peaceful conflict resolution in Mexican society to its program. 

In 1995, CENAVID began a project to create nonviolent means of resolving community, family, and civil conflicts in one of the most violent neighborhoods in Guadalajara. They began with informational lectures and training for children and adults and included information on how victims of violence and their families should be treated. The project was eventually taken over by the local Catholic Church, the Parroquia del Señor de la Misericordia, with CENAVID providing ongoing training and support. 

CENAVID also

• trains justice officials and public servants throughout Mexico in mediation
• promotes the use of mediation and ADR
• provides consultants for groups wanting to open mediation centers. 

Other groups and individuals are promoting penal mediation in Mexico. Dr. Jorge Pesqueira Leal, the director of the Instituto de Mediación de México (Mexican Mediation Institute), has conducted training for public servants in Chiapas as that State sets up informal processes featuring reconciliation and healing of harms caused by conflict. He has also produced a report for the government on the inclusion of penal mediation as a mechanism for crime prevention. In this work, he argues for the inclusion of mediation to create a space to allow social reintegration of offenders and to address the needs of those impacted by crime. 

Slowly, Mexico is moving toward restorative practices. In September 2002, the Supreme Court of the Federal District of Mexico and the University of Sonora are sponsoring the 2nd Annual National Mediation Congress. Several workshops and panel discussions will focus on penal mediation and restorative justice. These efforts are aimed at educating local justice professionals on the importance and effectiveness of restorative practices for providing healing and resolution in criminal cases and other forms of conflict. 

Resources used for this article are: 

CENAVID. N.d. a. Historia.  

Communicados de Prensa. 2001. “Encuentro Nacional de Procuradores Generales de  Justicia y Presidentes de Tribunales Superiores de Justicias.” Boletín 114/20012308.  

Delegacion de Mexico. 2000. Intervencion de la Delegacion de Mexico bajo el tema 7. Reglas y normas de las Naciones Unidas en material de prevencion del delito y justica penar. Viena, 14 de mayo de 2001.  10th session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. Vienna, Austria. 8-17, May 2001. 

Huerta González, Norma Leticia. N.d. “Transfomaciones a la tarea de prevención del  delito.” Universidad abierta. 

La Republica en Chiapas. 2000. Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas. Julio.

Pesueira Leal, Jorge. 2001. “Prevención de la incidencia delictiva a través de la mediación.” Plan Nacional De Desarrollo. Consulta Ciudadana.

Lynette Parker
August  2002