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Retrial sought for Mexicans on death row


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THE HAGUE, The Netherlands (Reuters) -- Mexico asked the World Court Monday to order the United States to retry 52 Mexicans on death row because it says they were not told of their right to consular help after being arrested.

The case is the result of a long-running dispute between the North American neighbors and underlines deep concern among some of Washington's closest allies over its capital punishment laws.

"We are asking the court to tell the United States to retry these nationals, but this time with the consular assistance they are entitled to," said Juan Manuel Gomez Robledo, chief legal representative for Mexico.

"Consular help could have meant the difference between life and death," lawyer Sandra Babcock told the judges as the Mexican side made its opening arguments.

Mexico accuses U.S. authorities of breaching the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations by failing to tell the Mexicans -- subsequently sentenced to death in 10 U.S. states -- of their right to assistance from their national representatives.

Robledo said Mexico was not contesting the legal grounds for the death penalty in the case, which applies to all Mexican death row prisoners with full citizenship.

Mexico went to The Hague-based International Court of Justice, or World Court, because all other legal and diplomatic efforts to solve the issue had been exhausted, an official said.

U.S. representatives declined to comment ahead of their opening statements Tuesday.

Over the last several years, 55 Mexicans, all of whom received consular assistance, avoided the death penalty, Mexico's legal team said.

In February, the World Court ordered the United States to stay executions of three Mexicans deemed in imminent danger and reserved the right to intervene in dozens more cases.

According to Amnesty International, a total of 71 prisoners were executed in the United States last year, bringing to 820 the total number of prisoners put to death since the resumption of capital punishment there in 1977.

The death penalty has not been applied in Mexico for at least four decades. Though the military still hands down the sentence, recent presidents have reduced it to long prison terms.



Copyright 2003 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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