Jalisco youth identify disappearances, housing and education concerns

Reporting and context

UDGTV reports that 38 young people who served as Jalisco legislators for a day identified forced disappearances, housing, culture, and access to higher education as major concerns. The report says the young participants discussed the risk of disappearance, including cases in which young people are allegedly recruited by organized crime. UDGTV attributes the concerns and recruitment claims to the participants and the report’s account.

Darlen Abril Navarro Zamora, identified by UDGTV as a legislator for a day, proposed that authorities apply protocols to ensure that searches continue when a person is reported missing. She said young people face the fear of not returning home or disappearing and described disappearances as one of the most serious humanitarian crises facing Jalisco. Her comments were presented as a proposal during the youth legislative exercise.

The outlet also reports that Daniela Mariel García Ramírez, who said she made seven attempts to enter the University of Guadalajara, called for public higher education to be guaranteed to young people who seek it. Óscar García Muñoz, a law student at the University Center of Los Altos, asked state and municipal governments to support student residences in Guadalajara, Lagos de Moreno, and Puerto Vallarta. Enrique Velázquez, president of the Jalisco Congress education, sports, culture, and youth commission, said legislators would consider the proposals and urged the participants to seek agreements despite political polarization.