Doctors in northern Mexico begin one-day strike to protest violence

Doctors in northern Mexico begin one-day strike to protest violence

2010-12-14 05:49:29 GMT+7 (ICT)

CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO (BNO NEWS) -- Hundreds of doctors and health workers in northern Mexico's Ciudad Juarez began a one-day strike on Monday to demand more security and protest the region's escalating drug-related violence.

According to the local El Universal newspaper, health workers have suffered three murders and eleven kidnappings so far this year. During the strike, only two of the over twenty clinics and hospitals in Ciudad Juárez will remain open for emergencies only.

Ciudad Juarez, a city that borders with the United States, is one of the most dangerous in the country as it is plagued with drug-related violence. Last Sunday, two physicians were freed after a ransom was paid.

"These last two weeks have been anguishing, as three doctors were kidnapped and one of them was found dead last week," said Arturo Valenzuela, member of the Medical Security Board. "These couple of weeks were very ugly. There is always fear that we don't see our relatives anymore."

The general strike began at 7.30 a.m. local time and will end at the same hour on Tuesday. However, protesters warned that the strike could be extended to 48 hours and could be implemented statewide if the promises from the government are not kept.

The physicians and health workers demanded the state government, through a letter, the resolution of the three murders this year as well as the designation of 200 federal agents to investigate the crimes against the health sector during the past three years.

Ciudad Juarez has registered over 2,900 murders so far this year with a daily average of eight people killed.

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