‘A debt with families of the disappeared’: NGO for delays in forensic bank in Mexico

The National Forensic Data Bank (BNDF), whose creation was announced three months ago by the Mexican Attorney General’s Office (FGR), It is not yet operational, the NGO Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez Human Rights Center (Centro Prodh) denounced on Monday.

“The operation and proper functioning of the BNDF remains pending and is a debt to the families of disappeared persons who tirelessly search for their loved ones.“The organization said in a statement.

Despite the evasions of the FGR and even the appeals that they filed against the amparo won by Olimpia Montoya (who is looking for her brother Marco Antonio, who disappeared in Guanajuato), in May the Prosecutor’s Office said that the bank would begin its operations.

The FGR had evaded since 2017 its obligation to implement said tool that can contribute to the fight against the forensic crisis of more than 52,000 unidentified bodies in Mexico. Although the announcement of the creation of the bank was a great achievement, the families of the disappeared and the organizations verified that it is not functioning properly.

Even, on August 10, 2023, the Judiciary ruled that this tool is far from being a settled pending.

“After the lack of information and multiple evasions by the FGR, the court in charge of monitoring compliance ordered it to specifically report which records made up the Bank. In the amparo trial, it was verified that the genetic bases, fingerprints and the registry of clandestine and common graves, among others, are not yet integrated into the BNDF“, detailed the Prodh Center.

They added that the transparency, coordination and accessibility of information provided by the local authorities that serve as the starting point for the BNDF’s operation is very low.

(Also: Five young people disappear in Mexico: there would be a video of one of them killing their friends).

According to the analysis carried out by the organization Data Cívica, based on public information or requests for information, there was no local that completed the request for information in its entirety.

“It is essential that the FGR abide by the resolution of the Judiciary, and put into operation all the necessary resources for the prompt creation and proper operation of the Bank, which is up to the task of deal with the crisis of more than 111,000 missing persons in the country and the forensic backlog“, they urged in the statement.

They also considered it essential that prosecutors prioritize compliance with their responsibilities so that the information reaches the bank and it can function.