IACHR alert setbacks in the Ayotzinapa case

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) considered that although since 2019 there has been progress in the investigation into the disappearance of the 43 students from Ayotzinapa, there are still obstacles in the delivery of information by authorities and the prosecution of the case.

In the presentation of the third report of the Special Follow-up Mechanism on the Ayotzinapa matter (MESA), at the Raúl Isidro Burgos Rural Normal School, Esmeralda Arosemena, commissioner of the IACHR, stated that there are alerts about the Specialized Unit for Investigation and Litigation of the Ayotzinapa Case (UEILCA).

Regarding her, she emphasized that her independence has been affected, which in turn affects the legitimacy she has gained.

Arosemena also described as worrisome that the lack of conditions to carry out an independent investigation caused the resignation of the head of the UEILCA, Omar Gómez Trejo, in addition to ministerial agents, since this is a symptom of regression in the knowledge of the investigation and would imply that the new owner will go through a new learning curve.

On the other hand, the commissioner pointed out as serious the interference of the central areas of the FGR in the arrest of Jesús Murillo Karam and in the withdrawal of 21 arrest warrants, since this goes against the independence and autonomy that the specialized prosecutor’s office should have and that, in the end, were also the reasons for the resignation of Omar Gómez.

Regarding the obstacles encountered by the investigation, the IACHR regretted that the State has not been able to dismantle the structures that persist within the institutions that seek to cover up the events that occurred on the night of September 26, 2014, in Hold on, Warrior.

Inclusion of victims

On the other hand, the IACHR highlighted as a positive aspect that the government has maintained an active and continuous operation to find the whereabouts of the disappeared, in different towns of Guerrero, and that it has promoted the inclusion of the relatives of the normalistas in the errands.

Regarding the victims, the IACHR appreciated that the State has made efforts to establish a route to work with them, although it criticized the absence of a comprehensive plan for their care.

He also highlighted the identification of the skeletal remains of the students Christian Rodríguez Telumbre and Jhosivani Guerrero de la Cruz, which meant progress in clarifying the final destination of the young people.

However, it was noted that the authorities still have the obligation to give a satisfactory explanation to the next of kin about the whereabouts of the 43 students.

In general, the IACHR made 36 recommendations in its third report, which it maintained are expected to contribute to compliance with the country’s obligations in relation to the investigation of forced disappearance and the final whereabouts of the normalistas.

Lastly, the Inter-American Commission recalled that, from 2019 to February 2022, it had a team in Mexico that carried out direct work on the ground, which allowed first-source information to be collected.

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