PBI-Mexico accompanies Cristina Auerbach of the Organización Familia Pasta de Conchos at meetings with political officials

The Peace Brigades International – Mexico Project accompanied Cristina Auerbach of the Organización Familia Pasta de Conchos at meetings with political officials and a visit to the memorial site near the town of Nueva Rosita in the state of Coahuila.

The explosion at the Grupo Mexico’s Pasta de Conchos coal mine on February 19, 2006 killed 65 people. To date only two bodies have been recovered from the mine.

Reuters has reported, “A special prosecutor for the case blamed Grupo Mexico for allowing a deadly mix of methane, heat and oxygen to build up in the mine, failing to build proper ventilation shafts or to neutralize explosive coal dust. Government inspectors who failed to enforce the necessary safety precautions were also implicated.”

That article adds, “In the moments following the blast, the workers were likely buried by thousands of tons of rock. Investigators also said it was possible that many of the men were incinerated.”

On May 1, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador pledged to recover the bodies still trapped in the mine and stated that the recovery effort would begin soon.

Today, PBI-Mexico posted on their Facebook page that, “PBI salutes the commitment of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador with the dignified rescue of the miners and will pay special attention to compliance of the agreements reached with the families and the Pasta de Conchos Family Organization.”

PBI has previously identified Coahuila as a high-risk zone for the defence of human rights.

Members of the Pasta de Conchos Family Organization have been threatened and harassed on numerous occasions in connection with their work. Cristina has been harassed, beaten, threatened and subjected to defamatory accusations.

The Pasta de Conchos Family Organization has received protective accompaniment from PBI-Mexico since 2014.

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