Post date: Jun 04, 2013 9:57:31 PM
Amnesty International says Mexican government needs to tackle disappearances in Mexico, stop impunity, find missing people and punish those responsible, whether they are criminals or public officials.
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO (JUNE 04, 2013) (REUTERS) - Amnesty International on Tuesday (June 04) accused Mexico's federal and state authorities of tolerating and failing to clamp down on disappearances inMexico.
The human rights group said that recent promises by the government to end disappearances and locate the victims were positive, but added they would be meaningless if impunity continued.A report titled "Confronting a nightmare: Disappearances in Mexico," highlights the country's ongoing pattern of disappearances in spite of the government's efforts to stem organised criminal groups. Some of these disappearances were enforced by public officials, according to the group.
A list compiled by the Ministry of the Interior and the Federal Prosecutor's Office that was leaked in November 2012 lists at least 26,000 people who disappeared without a trace during former Mexican President Felipe Calderon's administration.
Mexico's Interior Ministry last week said the number was much lower, despite a lack of investigations, the group said.
Amnesty International said one of the key human rights challenges facing Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's government will be to end the crisis of disappearances, locate the victims and find the culprits, whether they are criminals or public officials.
"We are talking about how authorities have allowed this situation to grow by neglecting to act tackling these crimes. Authorities have not acted and have allowed impunity and this impunity has facilitated the growth of the number of disappearances in Mexico. This impunity is not new and in the end what we are seeing is on the one hand, enforced disappearances where public officials have taken part in but on the other hand all the other disappearances where there are criminal groups and not public officials involved, but where the state has failed to meet with their obligations, making this situation worse," said Daniel Zapico, Amnesty International's Senior Representative in Mexico.
The report also documents the struggle by relatives of victims who put themselves at risk by conducting their own personal investigations, desperate to find answers.
Brenda Rangel Ortiz's brother Hugo disappeared in Monclova, Coahuila in November 2009, where he had gone on a business trip. Brenda said she needed answers.
"It's very painful to talk about the subject, but it needs to be cleared up and authorities need to deal with this because it's the obligation of the Mexican state to give answers about what is happening with the police and where he was handed over, which group. Because we know there is a log where my brother was detained but he was never handed over to an authority," she said.
The group said the Mexican government has failed to acknowledge the involvement of authorities in the cases. The group added a failure to investigate the disappearances was a breach of international law and thwarted opportunities to find them.
In January, the Mexican government introduced a law to trace victims of the drug war and compensate the families of those deemed innocent.
The law, however, only deals with victims whose deaths have been confirmed, and does not include provisions for those who have never been found.