Digna Ochoa
Encyclopedia
Digna Ochoa (May 15, 1964–October 19, 2001) was a human rights
lawyer in Mexico
. She was born in Misantla
, in the state of Veracruz
.
In August 1999, Digna Ochoa was kidnapped and held in a car in Mexico City
before being freed. In October 1999, Digna Ochoa was kidnapped in Mexico City and interrogated overnight. She was left next to an open cylinder of gas. Mexico City police investigated and the Inter-American Human Rights Court recommended protection for her. In August 2000, she went into exile in Washington, DC, USA and, while in exile, she was presented with Amnesty International
's "Enduring Spirit" Award in Los Angeles by actor Martin Sheen
. In March 2001, she returned to Mexico City and in August 2001 court-ordered protection for her was lifted. She began work in law offices at 31-A Zacatecas Street in Mexico City on October 16, 2001. Her career involved representation of various dissidents and in some cases raised allegations of human rights abuses including torture by government authorities, particularly the army.
.
Digna Ochoa was killed October 19, 2001 in Mexico City. Her body was found in the law office where she worked. A note was found by her body, warning the members of the human rights law centre where she had recently worked that the same thing could happen to them.
Several investigations followed her death. Although Mexico City officials initially ruled her death homicide, in March 2002 they ruled that it was suicide, a claim that was disputed by several senators. The autopsy report indicated that her body had two .22 caliber bullet wounds. Her death was caused by a gunshot to the head. The entry wound was on the left side. According to the coroner's report, the bullet passed through the skull from left to right on a slight angle from up to down and from back to front. The bullet remained embedded in her right temporal bone
. Ochoa was right-handed. The other bullet entered Digna's thigh from front to back.
In 2003, Digna Ochoa received post mortem
The Ludovic-Trarieux International Human Rights Prize awarded by European Bars.
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
lawyer in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. She was born in Misantla
Misantla
Misantla is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz, the administrative seats of the municipality of the same name. The municipality is bordered by Martínez de la Torre, Colipa and Papantla....
, in the state of Veracruz
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave , is one of the 31 states that, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided in 212 municipalities and its capital city is...
.
Biography
She went to law school in the state capital, Jalapa, in 1984 and began working part time for the Veracruz Attorney General's Offices in 1986. On August 16, 1988, while politically active with opposition groups, and after advising her family that she had found a "black list" of union and political activists at the office of her employer, she was abducted in Jalapa, Veracruz. Ochoa claimed that her abductors were state police officers and that she was raped. There was no investigation of her allegations. In 1991 she entered the Dominican convent of the Incarnate Word where she studied until 1999. She left without taking her vows.In August 1999, Digna Ochoa was kidnapped and held in a car in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
before being freed. In October 1999, Digna Ochoa was kidnapped in Mexico City and interrogated overnight. She was left next to an open cylinder of gas. Mexico City police investigated and the Inter-American Human Rights Court recommended protection for her. In August 2000, she went into exile in Washington, DC, USA and, while in exile, she was presented with Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
's "Enduring Spirit" Award in Los Angeles by actor Martin Sheen
Martin Sheen
Ramón Gerardo Antonio Estévez , better known by his stage name Martin Sheen, is an American film actor best known for his performances in the films Badlands and Apocalypse Now , and in the television series The West Wing from 1999 to 2006.He is considered one of the best actors never to be...
. In March 2001, she returned to Mexico City and in August 2001 court-ordered protection for her was lifted. She began work in law offices at 31-A Zacatecas Street in Mexico City on October 16, 2001. Her career involved representation of various dissidents and in some cases raised allegations of human rights abuses including torture by government authorities, particularly the army.
Death
At the time of her death, she was involved in the defence of peasant ecologists in GuerreroGuerrero
Guerrero officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Guerrero is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo....
.
Digna Ochoa was killed October 19, 2001 in Mexico City. Her body was found in the law office where she worked. A note was found by her body, warning the members of the human rights law centre where she had recently worked that the same thing could happen to them.
Several investigations followed her death. Although Mexico City officials initially ruled her death homicide, in March 2002 they ruled that it was suicide, a claim that was disputed by several senators. The autopsy report indicated that her body had two .22 caliber bullet wounds. Her death was caused by a gunshot to the head. The entry wound was on the left side. According to the coroner's report, the bullet passed through the skull from left to right on a slight angle from up to down and from back to front. The bullet remained embedded in her right temporal bone
Temporal bone
The temporal bones are situated at the sides and base of the skull, and lateral to the temporal lobes of the cerebrum.The temporal bone supports that part of the face known as the temple.-Parts:The temporal bone consists of four parts:* Squama temporalis...
. Ochoa was right-handed. The other bullet entered Digna's thigh from front to back.
In 2003, Digna Ochoa received post mortem
Autopsy
An autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
The Ludovic-Trarieux International Human Rights Prize awarded by European Bars.
External links
- Digna... hasta el último alientoDigna... hasta el último alientoDigna... hasta el último aliento is a Mexican film released in 2003.This documentary is about Digna Ochoa Plácido, a human rights activist who died under mysterious circumstances in 2001 in Mexico City following her kidnapping by the federal police in 1999. It was presented at the Guadalajara...
, a documentary film about Ochoa's life and death - "About the Digna Ochoa Case", Lawyers Rights Watch Canada summary of Ochoa murder.
- Amnesty USA reaction
- Dignificada, a song by Lila Downs that features her.