Movement for Peace with Justice: Mexican activists, lawmakers to propose new security law

Fox News Latino: The Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity, made up of victims of the violence in Mexico, agreed with members of Congress to create a working committee to lay the foundation for a new national security law. The movement resumed its dialogue on Wednesday with lawmakers after calling off talks on Aug. 3 in the wake of a lower house committee's approval of the proposed National Security Law. "The goal is to create a human and citizens security law," poet Javier Sicilia, the movement's leader, said.

Representatives of non-governmental organizations, academics and lawmakers will join the working committee, whose job will be to review the options in the security area and propose alternative legislation to Congress. Sicilia's movement called at a July 28 meeting with legislators for the scrapping of the public safety bill President Felipe Calderon proposed in April 2009. The movement considers the bill, which was approved by the Senate, to be detrimental to citizens' rights.

Calderon proposed a wide-ranging plan to Congress that outlines the rules governing his controversial policy of using the military in law enforcement. The president has maintained that the military must have the lead role in the drug war for the time being because municipal and state police have been thoroughly corrupted by well-funded cartels.

"We all have a role in these negotiations," Sicilia said after the five-hour meeting with lawmakers. Congress should come up with legislation "based on human and citizen safety, one that is solely compatible with public liberties," Sicilia said.

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