A mega-cemetery for unclaimed and unidentified bodies.
(Photo : Pexels)

The 1918 Mexican Revolution was a bloody conflict that spanned two decades and resulted in the death of almost 900,000 people. Most of the remains of these deceased persons have not been claimed until today. 

Over the years, Mexico has seen its most violent time. Even though Sinaloa, a state in Mexico, claimed that it has dropped its homicides by 61 percent in the last ten years, it is a fact that there are many states in Mexico where violence is still rampant.

Some states in Mexico cannot control the violence and could not even stabilize their state. One of the results of this brutal violence is the death of many, but most bodies of these individuals have not been claimed until now. As a result, there are many unmarked graves across the country. 

This situation led one state in Mexico to build a mega-cemetery for unclaimed and unidentified bodies. The government of Chihuahua announced that they will build the mega-cemetery on more than 12-acres in Ciudad, Juarez. 

In a published article from Mitu, Ciudad Juarez is the most violent city in Mexico. It is located just across the border from El Paso, Texas and the city has an estimated population of 1.5 million. According to the Chihuahua state most of the murders, or around 58 percent, occur in Ciudad, Juarez. There were 17,000 recorded homicides victims just in Ciudad alone. 

Moreover, the state-operated mega-cemetery will have total control in the burial process that includes the exhumation of bodies. According to the state's Attorney General Cesar Augusto Piniche that there is a need to build the mega-cemetery because the unclaimed and unidentified bodies and remains are currently buried in a regular cemetery. However, they are not taken care of as should be. 

Piniche stated during an interview, "We intend to comply with the highest standards and we intend to have a dignified space, to manage remains professionally and [to have] strict control on the entry, location, and removal [of bodies]," He also said that the International Red Cross participated in the design of the mega-cemetery. 

Moreover, before the burial, the State Forensic Internment Center will be located in San Isidro Zaragoza, a state government-owned area that is capable of storing up to 800 bodies. The construction of the mega-cemetery is estimated to cost $2.65 million and that includes ossuary, a bone room, and six refrigerated morgue chambers.

A detective in Nuevo Leon said that lots of cases "aren't filed or closed, but there is also no follow-up police work, just the report with the crime scene information and the victim's identification ... and that's how they stay."

This refers to the cases of deceased individuals according to Insight Crime. It is not surprising anymore why 9 out of 10 crimes across the 27 out of 32 states in Mexico go unpunished and the cases remain unsolved. 

Statistically, it is said that the conviction rate in Mexico is 5 out of 100, while America has 24 out of 100 convictions. Meanwhile, Asia has 48 out of 100 and Europe has 81 out of 100 convictions. This data is from the United Nations. 

Since Governor Javier Corral took office between October 2016 and 2019, the state authorities have buried 818 unidentified bodies and 207 corpses of people and 57 percent of the bodies were killed in Ciudad, Juarez. Crimes like homicides in the border cities like in Ciudad, Juarez has increased over the years.