Allegations against a member of the Working Group - Public clarification

The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) has been informed of allegations of a conflict of interest made against one of its members, Mr. José Antonio Guevara, in connection to the judicial decision of the Supreme Court of Justice of Mexico to release Mr. Alfonso Martín del Campo Dodd. Mr. Guevara, who is a member of the WGAD, is being accused of having influenced the WGAD decision to consider that the detention of Mr. Alfonso Martín del Campo Dodd as arbitrary in order to draw personal benefits.

In its Opinion No. 9/2005 adopted on 25 May 2005, the Working Group considered that the deprivation of liberty of Mr. Martin del Campo Dodd was arbitrary and requested the Government of Mexico to take the necessary steps to remedy the situation and bring it into conformity with the standards and principles set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Mr. Guevara became a member of the WGAD on 1 July 2014, that is, nine years after the adoption of the Working Group’s Opinion No. 9/2005. Thus, he could not have participated in the deliberations of the Working Group prior to that date.

In addition, the WGAD recalls that Paragraph 5 of its Methods of Work establishes that, when an individual case of detention under consideration concerns a country of which one of the members of the Working Group is a national, or where there may be a conflict of interest, that member shall not participate in the discussion of the case. In line with this clause, Mr. Guevara, being a national of Mexico, is precluded from participating in the deliberation of a case concerning his country of nationality.

On 30 March 2015, the Chair-Rapporteur of the WGAD issued a press release to acknowledge the release of Mr Alfonso Martin del Campo Dodd. The press release welcomed the release of Mr. Martin del Campo Dodd, whose detention the WGAD had deemed arbitrary and contrary to international human rights law. The Press release is not an Opinion and was initiated proprio motu by the Chair-Rapporteur of the WGAD, as per usual practice.

Special Procedures experts appointed by the Human Rights Council -- be they Special Rapporteurs, members of Working Groups, or Independent Experts, or others - - are not international civil servants employed by the United Nations. They are not paid by the United Nations and exercise their United Nations functions pro bono in their expert capacity.

The WGAD considers that the allegations of conflict of interest levelled against Mr. Guevara do not seem to be based on any factual or legal ground.

ENDS

For the Spanish version of the public clarification, please click here