María Esther Aguilar Cansimbe

The disappearance of María Esther Aguilar Cansimbe happened 11 November 2009 when the female newspaper journalist who worked for El Diario de Zamora and El Cambio de Michoacán in Michoacán, Mexico vanished. Her disappearance may or may not be linked to her coverage of the Mexican drug war but both Article 19 and Reporters Without Borders, two international press freedom organizations, have classified her disappearance as an act of enforced disappearance. She is one of four journalists and the only woman to have disappeared between 2006 and 2010 in the state of Michoacán where the drug war began.

Personal life

María Esther Aguilar Cansimbe resided in Zamora, Michoacán, Mexico. She married police chief David Silva, a former public security director in Jacona, and had two daughters, ages eleven and thirteen. She left her home in Zamora after receiving a phone call from an unknown source. Days before her disappearance, she had published a story about the arrest of a local drug trafficker. After 72 hours, her family reported her as missing to the authorities.

Context

The state Michoacán had become well known for its high levels of crime and government misconduct.

Impact

She is one of thirty-two writers who have been murdered or declared missing after covering Mexican drug-traffickers. Aguilar's disappearance is one of many that has caused outcry from the several press freedom organizations. Her case has been classified as enforced disappearance. This is covered under the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance enacted by the United Nations General Assembly. The convention that has been ratified by 26 of 91 nations. She is one of at least 4 journalists from Michoacán alone that have been killed or reported missing in that state.

Reactions

Within a week of her disappearance, the Committee to Protect Journalists had contacted authorities asking for their aid in safely locating Aguilar. Some journalists who had worked with her stated that her disappearance was directly related to her work.