To commemorate the Day of the Disappeared in Spain, poignant statistics show that 60 people disappear without a trace every day.
This shocking fact becomes even more relevant every year on March 9, when Spain celebrates National Day of Persons Missing for No Reason, a memorial day established after the disappearance of Cristina Bergua in 1997.
Cristina disappeared on March 9, 1997, at the age of 16, after leaving her home in Cornella de Llobregat, Barcelona.
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Her last sighting was on the Carretera de Esplugues, accompanied by her boyfriend. Despite an anonymous tip that her body was in the city landfill, no evidence was ever found. The case, which was reopened a decade later, remains largely unsolved.
The Mystery of the Disappeared
In Spain, around 2,000 cases of enforced disappearances are reported every year, which equates to a worrying rate of two people disappearing every hour.
Despite the resolution of most of these cases, 10 percent remain unsolved, casting a long shadow over thousands of families.
Cristina's case, still unsolved after 27 years, symbolizes a significant moment in Spain's handling of such disappearances and highlights the pain of over 5,000 families still seeking closure.
Categories of disappearance
Enforced disappearances are classified as involuntary when people disappear under circumstances beyond their control; voluntary, motivated for personal reasons; and coercive, often related to criminal activity.
The distinction is critical for families and authorities to understand the diversity of these incidents and formulate appropriate responses.
The sorrow of waiting
Families of the missing go through an arduous journey of grief, starting with the legal declaration of absence, which is crucial to managing the missing person's assets. Ultimately, they may be at risk of being declared dead, which allows inheritance proceedings to be initiated.
This step, considered by Cristina's parents for the sake of her siblings, highlights the complex interplay of hope, loss and practicality faced by those left behind.
In Spain, the search for answers continues every day, with the memory of Cristina Bergua and many others prompting a tireless search for the missing.
The creation of the National Missing Persons Center in 2017 represents a significant step toward addressing this problem, but the heartache of uncertainty remains a constant for many.
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