PBI observes protest by FUUNDEC in Saltillo in early February  © PBI Mexico

Mexico City, 19 February 2014. Last weekend, the collective United Forces for Our Disappeared in Coahuila (FUUNDEC) carried out a march in the state of Coahuila from the city of Torreón to the capital Saltillo. The families who took part in the Caravan for the Right to the Truth (Caravana por el Derecho a la Verdad) denounced irregularities committed during a search operation conducted days before in the northern part of the state.

On the way to Saltillo, the caravan was greeted in the town of Parras by the local Parishioner and striking workers, who manifested support for the march. In Saltillo, the families met with FUUNDEC's members from the city and a caravan that had come from the state of Chihuahua. The collective walked from the outskirts of Saltillo towards the city centre shouting calls for justice and the search of the disappeared. Arriving at the square in front of the governmental palace, the families displayed pictures of their loved ones and gave testimonies denouncing impunity and the lack of investigations into the whereabouts of the disappeared.

FUUNDEC expressed once again concerns over the search operation carried out in the northern part of the state between late January and early February, and urged the state government to provide an appropriate explanation. The collective also demanded that those involved be held accountable and the cessation of search operations until new procedures are adopted. FUUNDEC's concerns regard the apparent contamination of evidence and the lack of adequate search and investigation protocols for the operation. Dialogue between FUUNDEC and the government of Coahuila has been suspended due to these issues.

For five years FUUNDEC has advocated for the search of the disappeared and the implementation of appropriate protocols for such a task. The collective has registered over 340 cases of disappearance in Coahuila. The phenomenon has affected thousands of families throughout Mexico since 2008. This week, Amnesty International's Secretary General, Salil Shetty, met with relatives of disappeared people in Coahuila and highlighted the issue during his meeting with President Enrique Peña Nieto.

FUUNDEC has been supported and advised by the Fray Juan de Larios Diocesan Center for Human Rights and the Juan Gerardi Human Rights Center, organizations from Coahuila accompanied by PBI.

PBI expresses concern for the interruption of dialogue and calls on the state and federal authorities to consult with the families before taking further steps in the search for the disappeared, in order to guarantee that search operations be carried out in accordance to the families' demands. PBI also calls on the authorities to generate the necessary conditions for the spaces for dialogue to resume.

Further information can be found on FUUNDEC's website (in Spanish).