19 months since the 43 Ayotzinapa students were forcibly disappeared by police in Iguala, Guerrero the findings of the investigation were presented last Sunday (24/04/2016) as part of the over 600-page final report of the Interdisciplinary Group of Experts, known as the GIEI, which has been forced to end its work on the case abruptly due to the government’s refusal to extend its mandat.

The second and final report is a numeration of ills plaguing the justice system in Mexico and does not conclusively establish what happened to the students. But it’s impossible not to interpret it as an indictment of Mexico’s notoriously corrupt and often brutal justice system. The report, for instance, says the government’s version of events was based on the accounts of witnesses who were tortured. It faults Mexican investigators for failing to explore leads and for refusing to amend prior findings in the face of new evidence. 

 The government’s conduct fueled widespread speculation that federal officials played a role in the crime and later sought to cover their tracks.The report contradicts the official version of events and criticizes the Mexican government’s investigation to date. “There seems to be no limit to the Mexican government’s utter determination to sweep the Ayotzinapa tragedy under the carpet,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas Director at Amnesty International.

The experts outlined their findings during a conference before leaving the country tomorrow. Their mandate to investigate is expiring and the government has said it will not renew it. Relatives of the victims in attendance chanted “Don’t leave! Don’t leave!” No Mexican officials bothered to show up. That spoke volumes about the government’s lack of political will to reform judicial institutions and its callousness toward its citizens.
The families of the victims held a march in Mexico City also last Sunday. Protesters gathered in the capital to demand the continued search for the missing. The parents of the students held a press conference to reiterate their longstanding demand that the authorities continue the search and push for the prosecution of all those implicated in the crime.
Human rights defenders fear that without the participation of independent experts, the families of the 43 students will never see justice served.

Read more:
Mexico runs away from the truth (New York Times)

Rights Experts give damning report on Mexico “injustice” system (Telesur)

Mexico: New report on Ayotzinapa disappearances reveals government’s determination to sweep tragedy under the carpet (Amnesty International)

Case of the 43 disappeared students: Key points from the group of experts final report (WOLA)