Disappearances in Mexico involving state at ‘alarming’ rate, says report

Key Points:

• The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) report reveals an alarming rate of disappearances in Mexico, with over 130,000 people missing mostly in the past 20 years amid the government's war on drug cartels.
• While criminal gangs are responsible for most disappearances, the report highlights deep collusion between organized crime and state agents, with some disappearances directly carried out by government officials.
• Forced disappearances, a tactic with historical roots in Mexico's dirty war, have surged by over 200% in the last decade, often involving torture and extrajudicial killings, with state actors either participating or turning a blind eye.
• The Mexican government, including President Claudia Sheinbaum, denies allegations of state involvement in forced disappearances, rejecting UN reports that suggest these acts may constitute crimes against humanity.
• Families of the disappeared face significant risks and institutional challenges in their search efforts, with many activists killed, while the justice system struggles with impunity, having convicted only nine people for disappearances since 2014.