The horrifying figure: 3,217 girls and 2,235 children disappeared in 10 years in Mexico; 70%, with Peña Nieto

Translated by El Profe for Borderland Beat from Sin Embargo

Families of missing children and members of the Mexican Association of Stolen and Missing children showed up April 30th in front of the angel of Independence to ask the authorities for assistance. Photo: Andrea Murcia, Cuartoscuro

By Sugeyry Gándara 

From 2006 until March 31, 2017, 3 thousand 217 girls and 2 thousand 235 children between 0 and 17 years old were reported missing, a figure that represents 18 percent of the total cases registered in Mexico, indicated by civil groups.

Nearly 70 percent were last seen during the period of Enrique Peña Nieto's government (2012 to date) and 29 percent disappeared during the Calderon administration.

[On April 30th], relatives of missing children and members of the Mexican Association of Stolen and Disappeared Children demonstrated in front of the Angel of Independence, in order to raise awareness about this tragedy; as well as asking for help from the authorities to locate, rescue and reintegrate the minors into the family nucleus.

Mexico City, April 30- The presidency of President Enrique Peña Nieto is the one with the highest rate of disappearance of children and adolescents, as 70 percent of the cases were reported during this administration, reported today by civil organizations.

Ana Lorena Delgado, member of the Foundation for Justice and the Democratic State of Law indicated that in the last twelve years there were officially reported at least 5 thousand 452 missing children of which 3 thousand 217 are girls and 2 thousand 235 boys. ”This figure represents 18 percent of the total disappearance cases according to the National Registry of Missing Persons."

"Currently, Mexico lacks effective public policies to assist children and adolescent victims of disappearance. There are deficiencies in the application of the search programs such as the Amber Alert and the Alba Protocol, which rarely apply and the procedure to activate them is too complicated and / or bureaucratic," said Delgado.

For her part, Sandra Mejía of the Network for the Rights of Children in Mexico (Redim), contextualized that of every four cases of the disappearance of minors, three were in the administration of Enrique Peña Nieto. She added that 4 thousand 677 minors have not yet been located, 2 thousand 840 are women.

"The figures that exist on disappearances are alarming," she said.

The civil organizations highlighted that many children and adolescents are detained in the environment of migration to or within Mexico; however, the figures do not reflect the problem in a real way.

Official data show that of the total number of missing children, 41 are migrant children; “half of which are of American nationality,” explained Sandra Mejía.

She stressed that there is no specific data or figures of minors co-opted by organized crime.
Michael Chamberlain, member of the Fray Juan de Lario Diocesan Center for Human Rights, argued that the increase in missing children in the current administration is due to the continuation of the security strategy established by PAN President Felipe Calcerón.

"We cannot decontextualize that the beginning of this amount of victims come when this strategy is initiated to militarily attack the criminal groups and the only thing they have done is gotten stronger. It has been a vaccine for them [organized crime]. They have exceeded the capacity of the state," he said.

The defender emphasized that the highest peaks of disappearances occurred in pre-election years: in 2011 and 2017.

"The security strategy is only fighting gasoline with fire, and this has only generated more violence; As long as the security strategy is not changed, we will live in a context of permanent violence," he said.

IMPUNITY, THE BRAND

Lucia Chávez, member of the Mexican Defense Commission, explained that in the Attorney General's Office (PGR) there are 732 open inquiries. In the states, there are 197 investigations of enforced disappearance in 21 General Prosecutor's Offices in Mexico, according to information requested by the organizations from state prosecutors, via transparency.

However, from these data it is unknown in how many of these investigations the victims are minors.

Chávez clarified that the states answered that there are no open inquiries about the disappearance of individuals since it is not classified as such, therefore it is an obstacle to prosecute those responsible.

While in the Military Justice Attorney's Office, there are 78 investigative folders for forced disappearance in process, the activist added.

He added that in terms of sentences, the figures are even more insignificant because there are only 12 final convictions and none of them are for any cases of a missing child.

"We are talking about impunity in 100 percent of the disappearance of boys and girls," he said.