Judge Orders Federal Prosecutors to Accept Complaints From Mothers of Mexico’s Disappeared

Mexico City — A federal judge has ordered Mexico’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office (FGR) to immediately accept formal disappearance complaints filed by a group of 55 mothers and searching relatives who have been camped outside the agency’s offices.

The Fifth District Court for Criminal Matters in Mexico City announced the ruling Thursday, granting a provisional injunction in response to an amparo petition filed by the legal organization Abogados Convencionalistas de México.

The measure directly benefits the families whom the Public Ministry refused to serve on September 9.

The ruling instructs the Special Prosecutor’s Office for the Investigation of Forced Disappearance Crimes to take the necessary steps and to report its compliance with the order to the court within 48 hours.

The court’s action follows a mobilization by several search collectives, including Buscando Cuerpos, Regreso a Casa Veracruz, Guerreras Buscadoras Jalisco and Resilientes MX, whose members set up a sit-in outside the FGR headquarters after complaining of bureaucratic hurdles to formally opening searches for their missing loved ones.

Further Hearings Set for September and October

The judge scheduled a hearing for September 29 to decide whether to grant a definitive suspension of the challenged conduct. A constitutional hearing on the substance of the case is set for October 16.

The affected families urged prosecutors to comply with the court order without raising new procedural obstacles, saying delays would prolong their re-victimization in the street.

The ruling comes amid growing tension between search collectives and federal prosecutors, stemming from the FGR’s refusal to take the complaints in person — a stance that prompted the protest camp outside its facilities and demands that institutional re-victimization end.

More Than 130,000 People Unaccounted For

Mexico is in the grip of a disappearance crisis, with more than 130,000 people listed as missing in official records. In the vast majority of cases, the work of tracking down and finding the missing falls directly on mothers and other relatives.

The situation has been compounded by overstretched forensic services, impunity in investigations and the bureaucratic barriers families face daily at both state and federal prosecutor’s offices when trying to get investigation files opened.