Mexico City - Hundreds of Mexicans marched on Friday to demand
more action to clarify the fate of over 40,000 people who remain
missing in the country.
"We want them alive," protesters chanted in Mexico City, where they
had gathered to mark the International Day of the Victims of Enforced
Disappearances.
In front of the government building, an artistic installation
featured the number 40,000, white and red flowers, pictures of those
missing and black figures on which people could write messages.
Most of the victims had disappeared since 2006.
The under-secretary for human rights, Alejandro Encinas, said the
search for them is "the priority" of President Andres Manuel Lopez
Obrador's government. Lopez Obrador took office on December 1.
Karla Quintana from the National Search Commission said 3,024 mass
graves and more than 4,800 bodies have been found since 2006.
Many of the bodies have still not been identified.
The government announced that it will allow the UN Committee on
Enforced Disappearances to investigate the situation in Mexico.
The problem of the disappearances had long been downplayed, leaving
many families to search for the victims by themselves, without help
from the authorities, Encinas said.
The disappearances are attributed mainly to organized crime and to
security forces.