Over 2300 disappearances in Medellin since 2009: Report
Over 2300 disappearances in Medellin since 2009: Report
Friday, 24 February 2012 14:08
Arron Daugherty
More than 2,000 disappearances have been reported in Medellin, Colombia's second largest city, in the past two years, said the local ombudsman Friday.
A study, entitled "Human Rights in Medellin 2004-2011" and carried out by Medellin's Ombudsman Jairo Herran Vargas, reported 2,371 confirmed disappearances between January 2009 and November 2011 and 199 alleged disappearance cases.
Speaking with Colombia Reports, Vargas said, "Homicide causes the death of someone and the body of the person is evident (...) meanwhile in disappearances a person is abducted and eventually killed, which is to say the body never appears."
The Ombudsman continued, "
Medellin) experienced an increase in murders in recent years. The violence was linked to conflicts between criminal groups involved in drug trafficking, arms dealing, and other criminal activities (...) about two years ago many criminal groups began using disappearances instead of homicide, with a desire to hide murders."
More:
http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/22417-over-2000-disappearances-in-colombias-second-city-report.html