Mexico’s Search for Disappeared Migrants Has Evolved, but Challenges Remain

Mexico has one of the highest rates of disappeared persons in the world. Comprehensive data are difficult to collect, particularly about migrants who often transit the country illegally. The migrant-rights group Movimiento Migrante Mesoamericano has estimated that between 72,000 and 120,000 migrants went missing or disappeared in the country between 2006 and 2016. Over a six-month period in 2010, Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission reported that more than 11,000 migrants had disappeared due to kidnappings.