PUBLIC SECURITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS VENEZUELA CRISIS Venezuela faced one of the worst human rights crises in its recent history, fuelled by an escalation of government-sponsored violence. There were growing protests due to rising inflation and a humanitarian crisis caused by shortages of food and medical supplies. Rather than address the food and health crisis, the authorities instituted a premeditated policy of violent repression of any form of dissent. The security forces used abusive and excessive force against protesters, including by throwing tear gas and firing rubber bullets, leading to more than 120 deaths. Thousands of people were arbitrarily detained and there were many reports of torture and other ill-treatment. The judicial system was used to silence dissent, including through the use of military courts to prosecute civilians, and to target and harass human rights defenders. VIOLENCE AND IMPUNITY IN MEXICO Mexico’s human rights crisis continued, exacerbated by increases in violence and homicides, including a record number of killings of journalists. Arbitrary arrests and detentions remained widespread – often leading to further human rights violations, most of which were not properly investigated. More than 34,000 people remained subject to enforced disappearance, and extrajudicial executions were rife. Torture and other ill-treatment continued to be widespread and were committed with impunity by the security forces, with people routinely forced to sign false “confessions”. However, the Senate’s approval of a new law on enforced disappearances – following a national public outcry over the case of 43 forcibly disappeared students whose fate and whereabouts remained undisclosed – was a potential step forward, although its eventual implementation will require serious political commitment to ensure justice, truth and reparations. Congress also finally passed a new general law on torture. More concerning was the enactment of a law on interior security that would enable the prolonged presence of the armed forces in regular policing functions, a strategy that has been linked to an increase in human rights violations. UNLAWFUL KILLINGS Authorities in Brazil ignored a deepening human rights crisis of their own making. In the city of Rio de Janeiro, a spike in violence saw a surge in unlawful killings by the police, with soaring rates of killings and other human rights violations elsewhere in the country. Little was done to reduce the number of homicides, to control the use of force by the police or to guarantee Indigenous Peoples’ rights. The chaotic, overcrowded and dangerous state of Brazil’s prisons resulted in more than 120 deaths of inmates during riots reported in January. Despite the homicide rate falling in Honduras, there were serious concerns about high levels of violence and insecurity; prevalent impunity undermined public trust in the authorities and the justice system. Massive protests took place throughout the country – denouncing the lack of transparency around the presidential election held in November – and were violently repressed by security forces, leading to at least 31 people being killed, dozens arbitrarily detained and others injured. Dozens of unlawful killings by the security forces were reported in the Dominican Republic, which endured a persistently high homicide rate. Jamaica’s police continued to commit unlawful killings – some potentially amounting to extrajudicial executions – with impunity. Amnesty International Report 2017/18 29