Families of the disappeared light trees with photographs of missing relatives in Mexico.

Editorial / Correo / December 17, 2022

The Tree of Hope lit up with photographs of those who disappeared by violence in Mexico. In an act full of hope, parents desperately searching for their missing children illuminated a Christmas tree in the Mexican state of Guerrero with a series of lights and hung photographs with the faces of teenagers, women, and men, in the Zocalo of the port of Acapulco. This symbolic act was carried out by the “Asociación de Familias de Desaparecidos en México” Association of Families of the Disappeared in Mexico (AFADEM), who presented “The Tree of Hope” with the faces of those who disappeared by violence in Mexico. In the “Tree of Hope,” each of the relatives told the tragedy they lived in the absence of their loved ones. “If you know someone who has a missing person in their home or someone who has a missing person, do not hesitate to contact any of us,” said AFADEM spokesman Julio Mata.

Socorro Gil Guzmán, one of the mothers of the disappeared, explained her tragedy when her son Jonathan disappeared on December 5, 2018, after going to a soccer championship with his friends. The police detained them, and he was never seen again. “Carlos was tortured, killed, and thrown into the street. My son was disappeared,” the woman lamented. “People do not disappear or get lost, they are taken away by other people, and they are hurt; some are taken to illegal work like young girls, and men are killed,” Gil Guzmán added.

To read article in Spanish:

https://diariocorreo.pe/mundo/desaparecidos-en-mexico-encienden-arbol-con-fotografias-de-personas-desaparecidas-en-mexico-desaparecidos-arbol-de-navidad-guerrero-mexico-rmmn-noticia/

The search brigade for the disappeared concludes its work in Morelos: finds six bodies and reports non-compliance of authorities.

December 11th, 2022 /LATINUS

After two weeks of work in Morelos, the National Search Brigade for Missing Persons concluded its day in the state on Friday with the discovery of six bodies and skeletal remains, whose identification is pending.

“Despite the difficulties faced, including the breach of agreements by federal and state authorities in all aspects, this seventh exercise again represented achievements towards the search for missing persons and the construction of peace in Mexico,” the brigade said in a statement.

From November 17 to December 9, more than 150 families joined the search for missing persons in different municipalities of Morelos. Over the week, the brigade exhumed six bodies found in a clandestine grave in the municipality of Cuautla. Days before, they located skeletal remains in a ravine between Cuautla and Ayala and a point of interest in the municipality of Yautepec.

During their work, the brigade demanded authorities guarantee the safety and integrity of the families because, on Friday, December 2, they were intimidated by armed people while working in the municipality of Huitzilac. The events occurred around 1:00 in the afternoon when unidentified people fired several times in the vicinity of the search site to stop the work.

Video capture LATINUS

A Christmas “tree of hope” waiting for missing relatives

December 4th, 2022 / David Celestino / El Ciudadano

The collective placed photos as a protest against the lack of actions of the authorities to locate their relatives. Regardless of the obstacles of the City Council of Puebla to exercise their right to use public roads, the collective “Voz de los Desaparecidos” placed on the plate of the zócalo its “tree of hope,” with photos of relatives.

For the fifth consecutive year, the families of victims of enforced disappearance posted photos of those whom one day left and have not returned as a protest against the lack of “forceful” actions by the authorities to locate them. 

María Luisa Nuñez Barajas, the collective founder, indicated that the tree symbolizes the hope of the people for their disappeared relatives to return and sensitize the Puebla population to this problem that, according to the woman, has reached 3 thousand people.

At the base of two trees, a few meters from the Municipal Palace the collective placed the photos of José María Sedano Posadas, Claudia Morales, Jesús Sayas Martinez, Jesús Gutiérrez Rodríguez and others, who have not been located for months, and even years.  Nuñez Barojas stressed that the tree placement is also a search action because, in some cases, they have obtained information from people who see the photos.

To read complete article in Spanish:

Colocan «árbol de la esperanza» en espera de familiares desaparecidos