Mass grave in Mexico points to drug cartel murders: 250 skulls found
Citizens and family members took matters into their own hands 鈥� finally arriving at answers in the search for missing loved ones.
Citizens and family members took matters into their own hands 鈥� finally arriving at answers in the search for missing loved ones.
Mexican authorities have announced the discovery of more than 250 buried human skulls in the eastern state of Veracruz. They believe they belong to victims of drug cartel violence.
鈥淰eracruz is a huge grave,鈥� the state鈥檚 attorney general, Jorge Winckler, told local media. With excavations ongoing, he predicts that 鈥渨hen they finish opening the clandestine cemetery in the state it will be seen as the largest grave.鈥�
This grisly find might appear to mark a new low for a country racked by years of 鈥渄isappearances.鈥� But the grave鈥檚 discovery is also a story of courage and perseverance on the part of family members. After years of indifference from authorities, Mexicans are increasingly taking matters into their own hands to learn the fates of their vanished loved ones.
In 2014, 海角大神聽reported that estimates of 鈥渄isappearances鈥� in Mexico varied wildly 鈥� anywhere between 14,000 and 45,000 for the years 2006-2012.
A big part of the problem, explained legal expert Juan Salgado in a separate article, was mistrust of the authorities. 鈥淧eople think twice or thrice before going out to the authorities, because they assume that there is collaboration between authorities and criminals, or they may feel [threatened] if they go and try to file a case.鈥�
Events in Veracruz bore out those fears. The Associated Press reports that last year, the state鈥檚 governor, Javier Duarte, resigned two months before the scheduled end of his term and vanished. Still on the run, he faces charges that include money laundering, organized crime, and looting state coffers 鈥� including the resources needed to conduct DNA tests.
Families of disappeared veracruzanos remain leery of state authorities. Luc铆a de los 脕ngeles D铆az, who coordinates a group called Colectivo Solecito, describes Mr. Winckler as 鈥渁n arrogant and haughty person.鈥�
But rather than simply blame authorities, Ms. D铆az and other Colectivo Solecito members have begun searching for disappearance victims on their own. According to the AP, they started digging in a wooded area outside of Veracruz in August of 2016. When they began to find signs of bodies, they pressured authorities to begin a full-fledged investigation.
As excavations of the mass grave continue, the group has also begun to fill other gaps in the state鈥檚 investigative process. With Veracruz still relying on federal resources and outside groups like the Red Cross to conduct DNA testing, the group recently sponsored a collection of DNA samples to aid in the search for the disappeared.
Similar groups have formed to raise awareness about past human rights abuses. In 1977, the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo began weekly protest marches in Buenos Aires to protest the disappearances carried out by Argentina鈥檚 military junta. Forensic excavations have been ongoing since that country鈥檚 鈥渄irty war鈥� ended in 1983; recently, Mexico asked Argentine experts to help identify victims of its own drug violence.
But in Veracruz, it's not a desire for remains that's driving the mothers of the disappeared to seek answers. "We mothers say they are still alive, until we find out otherwise," Diaz told the AP.
Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.