Authorities in Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, removed search cards for missing persons from the public secretary office without providing an explanation [1, 2].
The removal of these cards disrupts the visibility of the disappeared and limits the ability of families to seek public assistance in a region plagued by disappearances. For many, the act represents a systemic attempt to erase the memory of the missing.
Officials at the Secretaría Pública removed 28 fichas, or search cards, from the facility [1]. These cards serve as critical tools for families to disseminate information and images of their missing loved ones to the general public. The removal occurred without any official justification provided by the government [1, 2].
Emma Mora Liberato, a mother searching for her disappeared relative, expressed the frustration of the affected families. "Ni buscan ni nos dejan buscar," Mora Liberato said [2]. Her words, meaning that authorities neither search nor allow families to search, reflect a broader struggle against state apathy in Guerrero.
The collective "Familias de Acapulco en Busca de sus Desaparecidos" has joined other mothers in condemning the action [1, 3]. The group said that the removal of the cards demonstrates a lack of will by the state to address the crisis of the disappeared. They maintain that the public office should serve as a resource for victims, not a place where their pleas for help are dismantled.
Reports indicate that the authorities retired the cards without justification [1]. This action has sparked renewed protests among families who rely on these public spaces to maintain pressure on the government to conduct thorough investigations. The families continue to demand transparency regarding why the cards were removed and who ordered the action [2].
“"Ni buscan ni nos dejan buscar"”
The removal of missing-persons cards in Zihuatanejo highlights the ongoing tension between Mexican state authorities and families of the disappeared. In regions like Guerrero, where disappearances are frequent, the visibility of search cards in public offices serves as both a practical tool for recovery and a political statement of existence. By removing these cards without explanation, the state risks further alienating victim collectives and deepening the distrust between the citizenry and the public security apparatus.
