testimony rendered by Messrs. Cabrera and Montiel cannot be considered as contradictions that denote falsehood or lack of truthfulness in the testimony. 149 In particular, the Court notes that, in the various statements made by Messrs. Cabrera and Montiel, the main circumstances are consistent. In this regard, this Court finds that, as the statements were amplified, the victims described more details concerning the alleged torture, but that the general framework of their account is consistent, starting with the statements given on May 7th, 1999, before the Court of First Instance. Therefore, in order to examine each of the alleged tortures reported by Messrs. Cabrera and Montiel in their statements, the Court will proceed to examine the medical certificates and expert opinions included in the case file. 1.2. Medical certificates in the case file 114. The Court points out that in this case 14 medical certificates were issued regarding Messrs. Cabrera and Montiel on three occasions: at the beginning of the criminal investigation, during the criminal proceedings conducted against them and when they were released for humanitarian reasons. These certificates had three objectives: to certify their physical integrity, to verify their physical and mental condition for the application of the sentence and the compatibility between the age, health and physical state of Messrs. Cabrera and Montiel with the sentence imposed. 115. Indeed, as part of the criminal proceedings conducted against the victims, certain military and civil officials issued medical certificates or reports on their physical condition. The Court notes the following certificates: a) certificate of May 4, 1999, issued by an assistant military surgeon, attached to the Regional Military Hospital of Chilpancingo, Guerrero 150 and a medical examiner of the Judicial District hands, threatening to smash his head with a stone, Teodoro Cabrera García, in his extended preliminary statement, said they were given nothing to eat and that they even had to use their elbows to dig holes that would fill up with river water for them to drink; thus, while RODOLFO MONTIEL FLORES asserted that they were tortured by soldiers in the presence of their neighbors and relatives, Cabrera García stated that when he was arrested, many people were around after he was beaten; while Teodoro Cabrera García held that “on the day of his arrest”, they took him to a field to torture him, RODOLFO MONTIEL reported that ‘all day Sunday’, they were at the river and that 'the next Monday, they were taken to the mountain and then tortured ; this coupled with the fact that Teodoro Cabrera García does not mention electric shocks, whereas RODOLFO MONTIEL FLORES does; and while Teodoro Cabrera denies having signed the documents prepared by the soldiers, RODOLFO MONTIEL FLORES asserted that, because he was subjected to torture, he was forced to sign the document prepared by the 40th Battalion.” Cf. Judgment issued on August 21, 2002 by the First Single-Magistrate Court of the TwentyFirst Circuit (Criminal Docket number 406/2000) (File of attachments to the answer brief, volume XXXI, pages 15139 and 15140, and 15152 to 15155). 149 Paragraph 142 of the Istanbul Protocol provides that: “[T]orture survivors may have difficulty recounting the specific details of the torture for several important reasons, including: (a) Factors during torture itself, such as blindfolding, drugging, lapses of consciousness, etc.; (b) Fear of placing themselves or others at risk; (c) Lack of trust in the examining physician or interpreter;(d) The psychological impact of torture and trauma, for example high emotional stress and impaired memory, secondary to trauma-related mental illnesses, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); (e) Neuropsychiatric memory impairment from beatings to the head, suffocation, near drowning or starvation; (f) Protective coping mechanisms, such as denial and avoidance and (g) Culturally prescribed sanctions that allow traumatic experiences to be revealed only in highly confidential settings.” When defining post-traumatic stress disorders in cases of torture, the Protocol also notes that in some cases “[u]nder such circumstances, the inability to recall precise details supports, rather than discounts, the credibility of a survivor’s story. Major themes in the story will be consistent upon reinterviewing.” Cf. United Nations. Istanbul Protocol. Manual for the effective investigation and documentation of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, August 9, 1999, para. 142. 150 This doctor “attested to the physical integrity” of the alleged victims. In the case of Mr. Teodoro Cabrera, he indicated that: “he has [one] cut in the left retro-auricular region, an injury that was not life-threatening and which would take less than fifteen days to heal; there were no signs anywhere on the body of any recent injury caused by beatings or torture.” Regarding Mr. Montiel Flores, he indicated 42