A cry that is already celebrating its birthday and no one wants to hear
Imagine this: another August 30, another International Day against Disappearances, and the background soundtrack is not a pretty trending topic, but the echo of slogans that already sound like *broken record*. “One more year in the fight! Listen to us, government!” chanted the searching mothers and relatives, because apparently, marking the day on the calendar does not come with the automatic update of government empathy. Their message, in case anyone in power had doubts, is clear: their voices are not decorative; They are the main ingredient for cooking new public policies that address the disaster of disappearances and the forensic crisis that has more unnamed corpses than a season of *True Detective*.
And just when the government is preparing to elect the new head of the National Search Commission (CNB), these families arrived with their homework done. They didn’t just come with banners and pain; They arrived with a to-do list that includes installing work tables in five axes: search, data, forensic identification, prevention and, surprise, being asked who they want as head of the Commission. Basically, they asked to have a seat at the table where decisions that directly affect them are made. Crazy, right?
The Glorieta where pain becomes memory (and claim)
In the morning, the Glorieta de los Desaparecidos in CDMX was transformed into an altar to despair and resistance. They spread hundreds of identity tokens on the ground – because a number is not a statistic, it is a loved one –, they hung slogans and a clothesline with the faces of searching mothers and activists who, ironically, were also disappeared or murdered for doing what the State does not do: searching. The message was clear: even searching has a deadly price in this country.
Ivonne, mother of a missing person in the State of Mexico, summed it up with the tiredness of someone who has already lost count of unfulfilled promises: “We are in crisis, totally in crisis. There are thousands of missing people every day. And I don’t see any action. This day for me should not exist.” His phrase should be the alarm reminder that keeps us up at night, not the usual speech that we already know by heart.
The demands are not modest. They ask that the Mexican government comply with international commitments and the recommendations of the UN Human Rights Office. Basically, stop pretending that you don’t see the reports and apply the recommendations with verifiable evidence, especially under the umbrella of the Convention against Enforced Disappearances. Spoiler: signing agreements is of no use if they only decorate a drawer.
The CNB, data and impunity: the trio that no one wants to dance
They insisted that the election of the new head of the CNB be through an open and participatory process, because nothing says “transparency” like a key position chosen behind closed doors. Shouting “Government listens, we continue the fight!”, they recalled that the crisis in Mexico exceeds 130 thousand missing people and 72 thousand unidentified bodies. Yes, you read that right: thousands of families wait for answers while the forensic system collapses like a server during rush hour.
They asked for real coordination between the CNB and the local commissions, immediate flow of information (because a WhatsApp takes less time than a bureaucratic letter) and active presence of family members in the decisions of the National Search System. Because, let’s be honest, who better to know what it takes than those who live this nightmare?
On the issue of data, they pointed out the need for responsible management and sanctions for authorities that omit or manipulate records. Basically, if they play with the numbers, they should accept the consequences. They also demanded training with a human rights focus, because looking for a person is not the same as filling out an Excel spreadsheet.
In forensic identification, the list continues: unified criteria, sufficient budget for the National Exhumation Program and the use of techniques that go beyond traditional DNA. Because, clearly, the methods of the 20th century do not solve the crimes of the 21st.
And to close with a flourish, in prevention, they demanded from the FGR and state prosecutors’ offices a public diagnosis of the 99% impunity in disappearances. Yes, 99%. It’s not a typo. It is the harsh reality of a system that prefers to look the other way.
This is not another article to keep in the “sad things that happen” file. It is a reminder that outrage must be translated into action. Share this story, because visibility is the first step towards justice. Explore more content about the struggle of search mothers and how you can support from your trenches. Indifference is the luxury that no one can afford.
