Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Acapulco (Agenzia Fides) - "I want to express my sorrow and that of the Catholic Church for all the consequences resulting from the tragedy of Iguala. We need to see the pain, so it can become an opportunity to build solidarity with all those who suffer, and become even responsibility, so that these tragedies do not happen again". These are the words contained in the letter of His Exc. Mgr. Carlos Garfias Merlos, Archbishop of Acapulco, reported in a statement of the Mexican Bishops' Conference sent to Fides Agency.
On September 26, about 80 students from the Normal Rural Raúl Isidro Burgos School, in the town of Ayotzinapa in Iguala, in the state of Guerrero, were organizing themselves to raise funds to pay the expenses of the Normal School, which in rural areas is the only reference education point and where often opposition group leaders are formed. As they were leaving Iguala, some municipal police patrols tried to stop the convoy of buses, which did not stop, so the officers began firing. Shortly after, when some of the students had organized a press conference to denounce the violence suffer, other men in civilian clothes, recognized by many as part of the municipal police, attacked the group again. The toll of the various assaults was initially of six deaths, three of them students, and twenty wounded. Fifty-seven students were abducted by armed men. At least twenty of them, according to eyewitnesses, were taken away on pick-ups by municipal police officers.
In recent days, the Federal Government decided to send federal forces to investigate in the area. Six clandestine graves near Iguala were discovered, where the charred bodies of 28 people were found. It is suspected that many bodies belong to the students murdered with the help of the Guerreros Unidos criminal group. The President of the Republic, Enrique Peña Nieto has described the episode as "a barbaric act", including those related to the authorities.
In his letter to the families and school headmasters, the Archbishop of Acapulco, as well as ensuring his closeness and his prayer, said: "The tragedy that took place in Iguala, with those killed and missing, has led to a crisis with political implications in the state of Guerrero and there is an increased awareness of the problems that Guerrero faces and need to be addressed with the responsibility of all those involved in the social and political field.
"Mgr. Carlos Garfias Merlos is also concerned about "the increasing distrust of the people towards public institutions" and concludes by calling on the authorities to solve the case and to inform the population. (CE) (Agenzia Fides 10/10/2014)
