On the occasion of the International Human Rights Defenders Day (December 9), the German Coordination for Human Rights in Mexico publishes a factsheet with background information and political recommendations for action to better protect activists.

In a country with one of the highest rates of violence worldwide, Mexico’s human rights defenders do crucial work: They drive forward and continuously fight for the search for over 130,000 disappeared persons, they expose links between politics and organized crime, and they bring to light serious
human rights violations that might otherwise never be known
by the general public.

Nevertheless, those who openly name human rights abuses and demand justice often become targets of the very perpetrators and responsible parties who seek to obstruct investigations and escape legal accountability. Since 2016, according to the civil society network Espacio OSC, at least 177 human rights
defenders in Mexico have allegedly been murdered in connection with their work, and 37 have been victims of enforced disappearances. These grave violent crimes are often preceded
by death threats, physical attacks, defamation, or attempts to
criminalize them.

What can be done to better protect human rights defenders from attacks in this dangerous overall situation and put an end to defamation and judicial prosecution?