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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Adam Aguirre, 520.240.1641 (daytime or evening)
Email:
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Humanitarian Volunteers Discover, Help Recover Human Remains in Desert
Tucson, AZ- Several volunteers from both the Phoenix and Tucson branches of the humanitarian organization No More Deaths encountered the body of a deceased migrant in the Chavez Siding area just north of Sardina Well on Saturday, October 16th. The volunteers immediately contacted the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office to help recover the body. They then waited for the Sheriff, the Santa Cruz medical examiner and Border Patrol to arrive. The cause of death could not readily be determined; however, it was apparent that he was recently deceased. He had identification on him, though this is no guarantee that his family will receive word of his fate.
Laura Ilardo was among a group of six volunteers who encountered the body around 9:30am. “We are completely devastated for the family of the deceased migrant and we are outraged all the more by the situation on the border that led to his death,” says Ilardo.
More than 252 remains of undocumented migrants were recovered in the Tucson Border Patrol sector between October 1, 2009 and September 30, 2010, according to Tucson’s Coalición de Derechos Humanos. FY2010 was a record for migrant deaths, which continue to rise due to growing border enforcement. For every one of these remains found and recorded, there are dozens more that go unfound—leaving scores of families without knowledge of their loved ones.
Says Danielle Alvarado, volunteer with No More Deaths: “The problem isn’t unauthorized entry; the problem is militarization and increased enforcement. It is this continued farce that has created a humanitarian crisis on our border, causing death and suffering in the desert and the destruction of families on both sides.”
No More Deaths calls on the United States to recognize the humanitarian emergency taking place along the U.S./Mexico border, and to bring an end to the enforcement practices that cause these deaths.
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