Crime & Justice

Women call for end to wave of disappearances in Mexico

Mexico City, Apr 19 (EFE).- Several dozen women marched on Tuesday in the center of Mexico City asking for justice for the disappearances of young people, especially in the northern state of Nuevo León, where authorities report up to eight disappearances per day.

“We are asking for justice, that women no longer be killed, that they protect us, that we can go out into the streets in peace,” Karla, one of the participants in the march, told EFE.

Protesters tried to reach the Zócalo, where the National Palace is located, but couldn’t because hundreds of policewomen surrounded one of the groups of approximately 40 protesters and several clashes took place.

Some demonstrators claimed to have been attacked and that some policewomen stole their belongings.

“There should be support, surveillance, they should investigate who does this (abuse, disappearances, femicides). Girls can no longer walk in the street – they (perpetrators) should be punished, they should be locked up so they don’t continue doing harm,” said Esmeralda, who participated in the demonstration.

The protesters tried to move forward but finally gave up and asked that they be allowed to leave for the nearest subway station. However, the officers took about half an hour to allow them to pass and many of those present ended up exhausted, they said. Finally they went as a group to the subway and the day ended.

For several weeks, Mexico has seen an increase in disappearances in the state of Nuevo León.

Last week, the formation of a “special group” to deal with this type of crime was announced, in addition to the creation of a task force made up of various security agencies that began its operations with the search for Debanhi Susana Escobar, an 18-year-old law student who disappeared on Apr. 9 on a highway after attending a party with two friends.

Femicides and disappearances have been on the rise in Mexico since the 1990s, and increased in the so-called drug war that began in 2006. Now more than 10 women are murdered in the country every day, which is why for three years the feminist movement has been gaining strength in the country. EFE

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