Mexico.- Mothers of victims of gun violence, activists and academics sent a letter to the USA in support of the Mexican government’s lawsuit against arms manufacturers of the United States, in which they denounced the “devastating” effects of illegal arms trafficking in the country.
The 25 signatories of the letter charged that theillegally trafficked weapons from the USA and that fall into the hands of criminal groups end up destroying Mexican lives and the “social factory” of Mexico, for which they gave their support to the federal government in their lawsuit.
“They have fueled the rise in violence and homicides in Mexico, taking hundreds of thousands of lives., have displaced tens of thousands of residents and cost the Mexican government billions of dollars in military and police spending,” the document states.
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The letter was inserted into electronic system of the federal courts of the United States just before the Mexican government responded to requests from arms manufacturing companies to dismiss the lawsuit. The defendants are Smith & Wesson, Barrett Firearms, Beretta, Century International, Colt’s Manufacturing, Glock Inc., Sturm, Ruger & Co and Witmer Public Safety Group.
The lawsuit was filed in August 2021 in Massachusetts federal court on the grounds that the negligent and illegal business practices of these companies have caused great bloodshed in Mexico. The Mexican government maintains that the companies know that their practices contribute to and facilitate arms trafficking to Mexico.
The companies have assured that there are many actors in the business of selling arms, that it is legitimate, and that their responsibility is diluted in the process.
Among the signatories of Monday’s letter is Mary Herrera, a Mexican who became a human rights activist after suffering the disappearance of four children. Everything indicates that they were victims of criminal groups. Herrera is one of the founders of National Links Network, a group that connects relatives of disappeared persons and organizes search brigades.
Another signatory is Maria Isabel Cruz Bernal, founder of Warrior Hounds, a collective of mothers and relatives searching for missing loved ones. Cruz Bernal’s son was a municipal police officer who disappeared in Sinaloa after armed men took him from his home.
Other signatories are Churches for Peace, Centro Prodh or Platform for Peace and Justice in Guanajuato.
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Mexico estimates that the 70% of the weapons trafficked into the country come from the United States, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2019, according to Foreign Ministry estimates, at least 17,000 homicides were linked to these weapons.
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