The Human Rights Commission (CDH) of Puebla has filed a formal complaint against the State Attorney General's Office (FGE) for possible acts of re-victimization of minors reported missing, according to statements from its president, Rosa Sánchez Soya. In this regard, Sánchez Soya emphasized the importance of the work of human rights defenders in ensuring that authorities act appropriately in sensitive cases such as the one mentioned.
The action by the CDH comes after criticisms towards the Attorney General's Office for the dissemination of personal data of the adolescents Miriam and Victoria, who had been reported missing and were later located after blockades on a highway at the toll booth to Atlixco. The president of the Commission expressed that, through joint collaboration and compliance with the law by all authorities, situations of re-victimization and criminalization can be avoided, thus helping to prevent errors in the system.
In the Puebla landscape, despite having the State Law on Search for Persons, there are still records and mechanisms pending that the legislation requires, such as the Special Declaration of Absence due to Disappearance. Initiatives like this, presented in the State Congress in October 2023 by the collective Voice of the Disappeared and Ibero Puebla, as well as the implementation of the State Search Program and the State Forensic Data Bank, are vital for improving the management of disappearance cases.
Regarding the backlog in resolving complaints since 2022, Sánchez Soya acknowledged the need to address this matter as a priority and reminded that the CDH does not have powers to act as a Public Ministry. Data from the National Register of Missing and Unlocated Persons indicates that, from 2019 to January 2024, 39% of the 3,277 missing persons are women, highlighting the urgency of effectively addressing this phenomenon in the country.
