Nearly 17 months after 43 Mexican students disappeared following their abduction by local police, president Enrique Peña Nieto has made his first visit to the city where the attack took place. But he avoided a meeting with the missing students’ families, instead overseeing a military ceremony on Wednesday to celebrate the national flag.
At the ceremony in Iguala – known as the birthplace of the Mexican tricolor – Peña Nieto made only brief references to the disappearance and probable massacre of the students on the night of 26 September 2014, an incident which fueled large street protests against impunity and official corruption.
Flanked by senior military officers – including the head of the army, Gen Salvador Cienfuegos, who has refused to allow investigators to question soldiers over allegations they were involved in the attacks – Peña Nieto called for Mexicans to put their faith in the country’s embattled institutions.
“Throughout our national history, Mexicans have confirmed time and again that the best route to the future is the road of laws and institutions,” Peña Nieto said in a message apparently aimed at quelling criticism despite a looming currency crisis, slowing economic growth and simmering discontent over violent crime and corruption.
“The regrettable events occurring here in Iguala, in September 2014, provided evidence of the need to continue advancing on this route.”
http://pvangels.com/news-mexico/177906/mexico-president-visits-site-of-students-disappearance
