Arturo Chávez
Encyclopedia
Arturo Chávez Chávez is a Mexican
prosecutor
who served as Attorney General of Mexico
in the cabinet of President Felipe Calderón
from 2009 until 2011. He previously served as Attorney General
of Chihuahua during the governorship of Francisco Barrio
.
He has also worked as chief advisor to former Senator Diego Fernández de Cevallos
, as Undersecretary of Legal Affairs and Human Rights at the Secretariat of the Interior
and as former envoy of the secretariat during the 2006 Oaxaca protests
.
on 2009 was received with harsh criticism from some human rights activists and relatives of the victims of the female homicides in Ciudad Juárez
, Chihuahua, who, according to William Booth of the Washington Post, claim he did little during his years as Attorney General of the state to solve the killings of hundreds of women in the 1990s.
Chávez was required by law to testify before the Senate before assuming office. According to Ken Ellingwood of the Los Angeles Times
, his party held a numerical advantage in the 128-seat legislative chamber but lacked a clear majority, so it needed to reach for votes across the aisle. During the session, Chávez expressed his opposition to the death penalty, though the Ecologist Green Party
had strongly campaigned for its implementation—and cannabis legalization, which the Senate as a whole had recently voted to decriminalize in small amounts for personal use. In the end, his nomination was confirmed with 75 votes in favor, 26 against (mostly from the political left), and one abstention. However, his appointment was criticised by the United States in a leaked diplomatic cable as "unexpected and inexplicable".
Chávez resigned on 31 March 2011 after 18 months as Attorney General, citing personal reasons, three weeks after the U.S. cable was made public. President Calderón described Chávez's work in office as having "been fundamental to Mexico's efforts to establish rule of law", and said Chávez was the reason many cartel leaders had now faced justice. Calderón has appointed Marisela Morales
, head of the organized crime department in the Office of the General Prosecutor, as Chávez's successor.
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
who served as Attorney General of Mexico
Attorney General (Mexico)
The Attorney General of Mexico is the head of the Office of the General Prosecutor and the Federal Public Ministry , an institution belonging to the Federal executive branch that is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of...
in the cabinet of President Felipe Calderón
Felipe Calderón
Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa is the current President of Mexico. He assumed office on December 1, 2006, and was elected for a single six-year term through 2012...
from 2009 until 2011. He previously served as Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
of Chihuahua during the governorship of Francisco Barrio
Francisco Barrio
Francisco Javier Barrio Terrazas is a Mexican politician affiliated to the National Action Party . He is a former governor of Chihuahua and former secretary in the cabinet of President Vicente Fox....
.
He has also worked as chief advisor to former Senator Diego Fernández de Cevallos
Diego Fernández de Cevallos
Diego Fernández de Cevallos Ramos is a Mexican politician affiliated to the conservative National Action Party . He was a presidential candidate in the 1994 election and President of the Mexican Senate.-Life and career:...
, as Undersecretary of Legal Affairs and Human Rights at the Secretariat of the Interior
Secretaría de Gobernación
The Secretaría de Gobernación , often shortened to SEGOB is the Cabinet-level agency of Mexico responsible for administering the country's internal affairs, similar to other country's interior ministries...
and as former envoy of the secretariat during the 2006 Oaxaca protests
2006 Oaxaca protests
The Mexican state of Oaxaca was embroiled in a conflict that lasted more than seven months and resulted in at least seventeen deaths and the occupation of the capital city of Oaxaca by the Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca . The conflict emerged in May 2006 with the police responding to a...
.
Chávez as Attorney General
His nomination to the post of Attorney General by President Felipe CalderónFelipe Calderón
Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa is the current President of Mexico. He assumed office on December 1, 2006, and was elected for a single six-year term through 2012...
on 2009 was received with harsh criticism from some human rights activists and relatives of the victims of the female homicides in Ciudad Juárez
Female homicides in Ciudad Juárez
The phenomenon of the female homicides in Ciudad Juárez, called in Spanish the feminicidios and las muertas de Juárez , involves the violent deaths of hundreds of women since 1993 in the northern Mexican city of Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, a border city across the Rio Grande from the U.S. city of El...
, Chihuahua, who, according to William Booth of the Washington Post, claim he did little during his years as Attorney General of the state to solve the killings of hundreds of women in the 1990s.
Chávez was required by law to testify before the Senate before assuming office. According to Ken Ellingwood of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, his party held a numerical advantage in the 128-seat legislative chamber but lacked a clear majority, so it needed to reach for votes across the aisle. During the session, Chávez expressed his opposition to the death penalty, though the Ecologist Green Party
Ecologist Green Party of Mexico
The Ecologist Green Party of Mexico is one of the six political parties to have representation in the Mexican Congress. The party's congressional strength currently stands at 17 deputies and five senators .-Elections 2000:...
had strongly campaigned for its implementation—and cannabis legalization, which the Senate as a whole had recently voted to decriminalize in small amounts for personal use. In the end, his nomination was confirmed with 75 votes in favor, 26 against (mostly from the political left), and one abstention. However, his appointment was criticised by the United States in a leaked diplomatic cable as "unexpected and inexplicable".
Chávez resigned on 31 March 2011 after 18 months as Attorney General, citing personal reasons, three weeks after the U.S. cable was made public. President Calderón described Chávez's work in office as having "been fundamental to Mexico's efforts to establish rule of law", and said Chávez was the reason many cartel leaders had now faced justice. Calderón has appointed Marisela Morales
Marisela Morales
Marisela Morales Ibáñez is the current Attorney General of Mexico. She was born in Mexico City and graduated from the National Autonomous University of Mexico with a degree in law before completing a master's degree in criminal science from the National Institute of Criminal Sciences...
, head of the organized crime department in the Office of the General Prosecutor, as Chávez's successor.