Mexico City, Mexico — The parents of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College who went missing in Iguala, Guerrero in 2014, allegedly disappeared by security forces and a local drug gang, descended on Mexico City for an annual march to demand justice for their children.
Ten years on, the disappearance has become one of the most emblematic cases of human rights abuses in a country that has been riddled with them for decades. Despite the government admitting in 2022 that the disappearance was a crime of the state, no major military or government officials have been convicted related to the case.
The parents returned to the capital on September 23 to denounce the impunity and what they — as well as independent investigators — call stonewalling from the government of outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who campaigned on bringing justice to the families of the missing students.
Read more: Investigation into Mexico’s 43 missing students ends, commission accuses government of stonewalling
“No one imagined that those events would remain in impunity,” said Isidoro Vicario, a lawyer for the Ayotzinapa families. “Nor did anyone realize that the aggression during which the students disappeared was orchestrated by various police and military forces, not just organized crime in the city of Iguala. Now, a decade later, we can affirm that the Ayotzinapa case is indeed a state crime.”
Ahead of a march planned for September 26, the parents were welcomed on Monday by the Otomí indigenous people at the Casa de los Pueblos Samir Flores Soberanes in Mexico City. The center is named after Samir Flores, an Indigenous leader and land defender who was murdered in February 2019, and acts as a meeting place for rights defenders.
Aztec Reports attended the meeting of parents and supporters. Below are some of their messages, edited for length and clarity.
Joaquina García Velázquez, Mother of Martín Getsemany Sánchez García
“We are in the same place as on the first day, not knowing what happened to our children or where they are. Our struggle has been going on for 10 years now, filled with suffering and pain because we don’t have our children. We are not the only ones suffering; there are thousands and thousands of missing people throughout the country.”
“But we, as mothers, will continue this fight until we find out where our children are or what happened to them. No matter who comes, we will keep fighting until we reach the truth.”
Blanca Nava, Mother of Jorge Álvarez Nava
“Ten years sounds easy, but only God knows what we have been through. As a mother, we will not stop fighting for the truth, to find them.”
“And that’s why I have always told the government that it wasn’t the criminals; the criminals are the police, because they took them away. Just as they took them alive, that’s how we want them back—to end this suffering and pain, to tell us the truth. It’s been 10 years. We haven’t stopped; we haven’t had a peaceful night because we are always thinking of them. There are no words to express it. As a mother, it’s a great pain to have your child taken from you. I love my son, and I want him back.”
Mario Abarca Carrillo, Brother of Luis Ángel Abarca Carrillo
“I am the brother of one of the 43. His name is Luis Ángel Abarca Carrillo, and the truth is that since he disappeared since he left Costa Chica, we have been waiting for him because the whole family is still waiting for him. Why? Because we hold onto the hope that they will return to their homes.”
“For them, the army is untouchable. But we all know that the government had direct involvement through the police, the army, and the municipal police. They took the young men and disappeared them, colluding with organized crime. The truth is, fighting for 10 years and being present here, my respect to the parents because it is a tremendous pain.”
Francisco Lauro Villegas, Father of Magdaleno Rubén Lauro Villegas
“When Andrés Manuel López Obrador started his campaign, he said, ‘Nice to meet you, parents. I will help you.’ As parents, we felt very happy that we would finally learn the truth about our children. He lied to us as if we were little children. It’s almost three days until we reach 10 years without knowing the truth. But we, as parents, have not grown tired of marching, protesting.”
The march will take place, as it does every year, on September 26, the date when the 43 students were forcibly taken and disappeared, along Reforma Avenue, the main thoroughfare of Mexico City, where the iconic Independence Monument stands — a golden angel that overlooks the heart of the city.
