UNCLASSIFIED E11 CONFIDENTIAL PTQ8430 RELEASED IN FULL PAGE 01 MEXICO 05529 01 OF 02 122240Z ACTION DRL-02 INFO LOG-00 NP-00 AID-00 AMAD-00 INL-00 DODE-00 DOEE-00 WHA-00 SRPP-00 DS-00 EB-00 FBIE-00 VC-00 H-01 TEDE-00 INR-00 I0-00 L-00 VCE-00 AC-01 NSAE-00 OIC-02 OMB-01 OPIC-01 PA-00 PM-00 PRS-00 ACE-00 P-00 SP-00 STR-00 TRSE-00 USIE-00 PMB-00 DSCC-00 PRM-00 G-00 NFAT-00 SAS-00 008W ------------------CA9C6F 1222412 38 R 12211OZ JUL 02 FM AMEMBASSY MEXICO TO SECSTATE WASHDC 9849 INFO NSC WASHDC CIA WASHDC DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MEXICO 005529 DEPT FOR WHA MEX WHA OAS AND ALSO FOR DRL NSC FOR BROCK E O 12958 DELL 07 11 2007 TAGS PGOV PHUM KJUS MX SUBJECT FORMER PRESIDENT APPEARS BEFORE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR FOR SECOND TIME CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 02 MEXICO 05529 01 OF 02 1222402 CLASSIFIED BY J CHRISTIAN KENNEDY MINISTER COUNSELOR FOR POLITICAL AFFAIRS REASON 1 5D 1 U SUMMARY FORMER PRESIDENT ECHEVERRIA REPEATED HIS SILENT ACT DURING HIS SECOND APPEARANCE JULY 9 BEFORE THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR THIS TIME HOWEVER HE MADE AN UNEXPECTED FRONT DOOR EXIT TO FACE WAITING JOURNALISTS AND PROTESTORS CAUSING A MEDIA FEEDING FRENZY HE BLAMES FORMER PRESIDENT DIAZ ORDAZ AND FEDERAL DISCTRICT HEAD OF GOVERNMENT MARTINEZ DOMINGUEZ FOR THE EVENTS OF '68 AND 171 RESPECTIVELY BUT DISAVOWS BLAME FOR HIMSELF MARTINEZ DOMINGUEZ' SCHEDULED TESTIMONY FOR JULY 17 IS EXPECTED TO REFUTE ECHVERRIA'S CLAIM END SUMMARY 2 U FORMER PRESIDENT LUIS ECHEVERRIA ALVAREZ APPEARED FOR UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE REVIEW AUTHORITY NORMAN M BOUTON DATE CASE ID 15 SEP 2006 200604055 UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED THE SECOND TIME BEFORE IGNACIO CARRILLO THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR INVESTIGATING DISAPPEARANCES AND HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES DURING THE DIRTY WAR8 OF THE 60 S AND 70 S THIS TIME TO ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS ROLE IN THE JUNE 10 1971 KILLINGS KNOWN AS JUEVES DE CORPUS8 WHILE PRESIDENT OF MEXICO 3 U ECHEVERRIA REPEATED HIS JULY 2 SILENT ACT WHILE HE LISTENED TO THE CHARGES AND THE 159 QUESTIONS PUT TO HIM IN CONTRAST TO HIS HURRIED EXIT BY CAR FROM HIS PREVIOUS TESTIMONY ECHEVERRIA EXITED THROUGH THE FRONT OF THE BUILDING WITHOUT SECURITY ESCORTS INTO A WAITING CROWD OF PROTESTORS AND JOURNALISTS HIS DEFIANT LAUGH WAS SEEN AS A PROVOCATION TO THE ASSEMBLED CROWD HE WAS HUSTLED BACK INTO THE BUILDING BY SECURITY PERSONNEL AND WAS NOT PHYSICALLY HARMED CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 03 MEXICO 05529 01 OF 02 1222402 4 U THE FORMER PRESIDENT LATER ANSWERED JOURNALISTS QUESTIONS AT HIS HOME ECHEVERRIA NAMED FORMER PRESIDENT GUSTAVO DIAZ ORDAZ AS THE PERSON PARTIALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OCT 2 1968 KILLINGS AT THE THREE CULTURES PLAZA IN TLATELOLCO NOTE ECHEVERRIA WAS AT THE TIME SECRETARY OF GOVERNMENT SEGOB LIKEWISE HE BLAMED ALFONSO MARTINEZ DOMINGUEZ AT THE TIME THE HEAD OF THE FEDERAL DISTRICT DF GOVERNMENT FOR THE KILLINGS OF JUEVES DE CORPUS 8 HE ALSO SAID LOTS OF PEOPLE WERE RESPONSIBLE HE RECOGNIZED THAT SOME MISTAKES8 MAY HAVE BEEN COMMITTED DURING BOTH EVENTS BUT NOT BY HIM HE ADMITTED KNOWLEDGE OF THE PARA-MILITARY PARA-POLICE GROUPS NAMED BRIGADA OLIMPIA AND HALCONES HE AFFIRMED THAT HE ORDERED THE HALCONES TO BE DISBANDED THE DAY AFTER THE JUNE 10 ATTACK 5 U ASKED ABOUT THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR INVESTIGATING BOTH EVENTS ECHEVERRIA REPLIED THAT IN 68 THE PRESIDENT DIAZ ORDAZ HAD THE RESPONSIBILITY TO INVESTIGATE IN 171 WHEN ECHEVERRIA WAS PRESIDENT HE FIRED ALFONSO MARTINEZ DOMINGUEZ FOR HIS RESPONSIBILITY DID THAT FIRING ATONE FOR 33 DEATHS HE WAS ASKED NO HE REPLIED ECHEVERRIA ALSO SAID-HE NEVER SAW THE ATTORNEY GENERAL S' PGR REPORT ON THE INCIDENT ALFONSO DOMINGUEZ MARTINEZ HAS ACCUSED ECHEVERRIA OF HAVING FULL KNOWLEDGE OF THE EVENTS IN 71 AND HAVING ORDERED THAT NO PHOTOGRAPHS BE TAKEN AND ANY BODIES BE DISPOSED OF DOMINGUEZ IS SCHEDULED TO TESTIFY BEFORE THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR ON JULY 17 NOTE DOMINGUEZ WAS LATER REINSTATED INTO POLITICAL LIFE AND LATER BECAME GOVERNOR OF NUEVO LEON UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 04 MEXICO 05529 01 OF 02 122240Z 6 U ECHEVERRIA IS BEING DEFENDED BY JUAN VELAZQUEZ EVERS AN ATTORNEY WHO HAS REPRESENTED FORMER PRESIDENTS JOSE LOPEZ PORTILLO MIGUEL DE LA MADRID AND CARLOS SALINAS HE WAS ALSO INVOLVED IN THE INVESTIGATION INTO THE KILLINGS OF JOSE RUIZ MASSIEU AND LUIS DONALDO COLOSIO INTERESTINGLY VELAZQUEZ'S THESIS DURING HIS LAW DEGREE STUDIES AT THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MEXICO UNAM WAS TITLED GENOCIDE A CRITIAL ANALYSIS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW ECHEVERRIA HAS AGAIN BEEN GIVEN 40 DAYS TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS IN WRITING ASKED BY THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR 7 C COMMENT THE INVESTIGATION INTO THE DISAPPEARANCES OF THE 60 5 AND 70 S HAS PICKED UP STEAM AND HEADLINES WITH ECHEVARRIA'S APPEARANCES BEFORE THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR ONE IMMEDIATE RESULT OF THESE INVESTIGATIONS IS THAT MEXICANS ARE FINALLY BEING ENCOURAGED TO FORMALLY DENOUNCE TO THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE THE DISAPPEARANCES OF FAMILY MEMBERS DURING THAT PERIOD MANY OF THE PRINCIPAL ACTORS INVOLVED IN THE '68 AND '71 EVENTS ARE STILL ALIVE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF FORMER PRESIDENT DIAZ ORDAZ FORMER DEPUTY GOVERNMENT SECRETARY FERNANDO GUTIERREZ BARRIOS AND A FEW OTHERS FORMER DF GOVERNMENT HEAD ALFONSO MARTINEZ DOMINGUEZ IS THE NEXT MAJOR FIGURE INVOLVED IN THE EVENTS OF JUEVES DE CORPUS SCHEDULED TO TESTIFY BEFORE THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR ON JULY 17 HIS TESTIMONY WILL VERY LIKELY IMPLICATE ECHEVERRIA AS HAVING HAD A MORE DIRECT ROLE IN THE JUEVES DE CORPUS CONFIDENTIAL CONFIDENTIAL PTQ8431 PAGE 01 ACTION DRL-02 MEXICO 05529 02 OF 02 122240Z INFO LOG-00 NP-00 AID-00 AMAD-00 INL-00 DODE-00 DOES -00 WHA-00 SRPP-00 DS-00 EB-00 FBIE-00 VC-00 H-01 TEDE-00 INR-00 I0-00 L-00 VCE-00 AC-01 NSAE-00 OIC-02 OMB-01 OPIC-01 PA700 PM-00 PRS-00 ACE-00 P-00 SP-00 STR-00 TRSE-00 USIE-00 R-00 PMB-00 DSCC-00 PRM-00 G-00 NFAT-00 SAS-00 008W ------------------CA9C74 122241Z 38 R 122110Z JUL 02 FM AMEMBASSY MEXICO TO SECSTATE WASHDC 9850 INFO NSC WASHDC CIA WASHDC DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED ALL LAS CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE C 0 NF t'D E N T I A L SECTION 02 OF 02 MEXICO 005529 DEPT FOR WHA MEX WHA OAS AND ALSO FOR DRL NSC FOR BROCK E O 12958 DELL 07 11 2007 TAGS PGOV PHUM KJUS MX SUBJECT FORMER PRESIDENT APPEARS BEFORE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR FOR SECOND TIME CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 02 MEXICO 05529 02 OF 02 122240Z EVENTS THAN THE FORMER PRESIDENT IS ADMITTING NO OTHER FORMER SENIOR OFFICIAL HAS BEEN SCHEDULED TO TESTIFY BEYOND MARTINEZ DOMINGUEZ 8 C COMMENT CONTINUED ALTHOUGH MANY LEGAL OBSERVERS SAY THAT THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CRIMES ALLEGEDLY COMMITTED BY FORMER GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS WILL LIKELY KEEP THEM OUT OF JAIL THE VISUAL IMAGES OF A FORMER PRESIDENT BEING HAULED IN TO TESTIFY AND BEING OPENLY SCORNED AND MOCKED HAVE HAD A STIRRING EFFECT ON MEXICAN SOCIETY IN THE WAR AGAINST IMPUNITY BEING WAGED BY THE FOX ADMINISTRATION AND CIVIL SOCIETY ECHEVERRIA'S AUDIENCE MARKS A TACTICAL IF NOT STRATEGIC VICTORY FOR THOSE WHO SEEK A MORE TRANSPARENT AND ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNMENT DAVIDOW CONFIDENTIAL END OF DOCUMENT UNCLASSIFIED