Abstract

ALMANZA-AVENDANO, Ariagor Manuel; HERNANDEZ-BRUSSOLO, Ricardo  and  GOMEZ-SAN LUIS, Anel Hortensia. Ambiguous Loss: Mothers of Missing Persons in Tamaulipas, Mexico. Región y sociedad [online]. 2020, vol.32, e1396.  Epub Mar 10, 2021. ISSN 2448-4849.  https://doi.org/10.22198/rys2020/32/1396.

The objective of this research is to understand the ambiguous loss of five mothers of people who suffered forced disappearance in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. In-depth interviews were conducted and an interpretative-phenomenological analysis was made. The results show that this mothers experience social suffering and disruption of daily life due to the absence of their child and develop a mechanism to facilitate his or her psychological presence, they but continue experiencing discomfort. Among the context elements that prolong the suffering are the institutional inefficiency and social isolation. One limitation of this research is the failure to incorporate the voices of other family members, those of mothers who have suffered forced displacement, and of those that do not report the disappearance due to fear. It is concluded that it is necessary for the State to recognize its participation in the origin and the maintenance of social suffering and that its interventions must incorporate the psychosocial and community dimension.

Keywords : mothers; forced disappearance; ambiguous loss; Tamaulipas.

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