43 missing students incites unrest in Mexico

Thousands of protesters demand justice for drug cartel’s kidnappings

By Florinda Hershey, Staff Writer

People in Mexico are demanding justice for the 43 missing students in Ayotzinapa, Mexico.

The students went missing on Sept. 26, when they were attacked and kidnapped by municipal police in Iguala, Guerrero, Mexico, and reportedly handed over to criminal group Guerreros Unidos.

The 43 students are still missing with no leads on their whereabouts. Information suggests that they might be dead, but their parents believe they are still alive.

Allegedly, Jose Abarca, the ex-mayor of Iguala Guerrero, and his wife Maria Angeles Pineda, felt threatened by these students, who planned to protest at an event where Angeles Pineda was announcing the chance to be the new mayor of Iguala.

The idea was to prevent the students from coming to ruin the event. Abarca and his wife would have given the order to the chief of police of Iguala, Felipe Flores, to eliminate the threat of students.

Abarca had links with the criminal group Guerreros Unidos; the police in Iguala obeyed the boss of Guerreros Unidos for cash, while the criminal group received orders from the chief of police.

Forty-three students were kidnapped, and the rest of them were injured. Others survived, and they talked about what happened that night, when the police started shooting at the bus in which they were riding.

Father Alejandro Solalinde said that some students were killed and some were burned alive, according to the testimony of two witnesses. The father’s testimony was painful for the parents, but helps the authorities to investigate the case.

More than two months have passed and they do not have any idea of the missing students’ whereabouts.

In Iguala, authorities have found pits with bodies, on which they have conducted DNA tests, but none have matched the students’ DNA.

Parents, students and people from many parts of the world have started demonstrations to demand justice and to find the students.

The president of Mexico seems in no hurry to clarify the facts. The ex-mayor of Iguala and his wife have been captured, and also the chief of police, but the authorities have not given answers to the parents.

This event has drawn attention worldwide, and people around the world have sympathized with the people in Mexico.

Joana Perez, a student at Contra Costa College, said that she is scared to go to Mexico and she fears for her niece who is a student in Guerrero, Mexico.

Beth Goehring, CCC kinesiology department chairperson and professor, said that in many cultures, when students protest they pose a risk for the government, and it is not uncommon for governments to take extreme measures.

The disappearance of the students is another event in Mexico’s recent history, and the people of Mexico are tired of their corrupt government officials.

People are demanding the resignation of the president of Mexico due to the inability to solve the disappearance of the 43 students.

The reactions were not long in coming. As La Raza studies professor Agustin Palacios said, “The government of Mexico has shown that it cannot guarantee the security of society in Mexico, and also that it is linked to drug trafficking.

“There is uncertainty in Mexico and parents of the missing students are demanding to have their children back.”