Mexico: 'a graveyard for immigrants'

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Mothers of Central American immigrants disappeared in Mexico.

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On October 15, a "Caravan of Mothers of Central America" will arrive in El Ceibo, an important town along the Mexico-Guatemala border. The caravan is comprised of the parents coming El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala who are looking for their children who have gone missing in Mexico while making the perilous transit to the United States.

According to the Fides news service, the caravan started its journey on October 10, and is scheduled to arrive in Mexico City on November 3. The group will pass through 14 states in the Mexican union and stop in 23 cities, in search of clues about the fate of thousands of Central Americans who have disappeared in Mexico. This is the fourth such caravan.

During the nearly 4,600 km journey, participants will be supported by local authorities, migrant hostels, and other institutions of immigration in the states of Tlaxcala and Tamaulipas, as well as Mexico City. Human rights advocates and universities have also promised aid.

The caravan's organizers hope to draw attention to the treatment that Mexican authorities, especially the police, mete out to Central American transients and immigrants. It is no secret that on the streets of Mexico several immigrants have disappeared or been murdered, especially in the last six years, ever since Mexico's war on drugs was declared by former President Salinas. While there are no official statistics, there are claims that the war on drugs has reaped 70,000 dead or missing people, among which there are numerous immigrants.

(Central American emigrants hopping a train in Mexico)

The mothers participating in the caravan also made a request for the exhumation of the bodies found in mass graves and in cemeteries, where hundreds of people are buried without identification. "All Mexico is a graveyard of immigrants," reads a sign displayed by the caravan. The Catholic bishops of Central America have frequently denounced the treatment their countrymen receive at the hands of Mexican authorities.

Spero News editor Martin Barillas is a former US diplomat, who also worked as a democracy advocate and election observer in Latin America. He is also a freelance translator.