Debanhi Escobar, the young woman who decided to study law to help other citizens: “We don't lose hope of finding her”

Cheerful, outgoing, charismatic and funny are the adjectives that a member of the collective Mujeres Sin Fear Monterrey, used to describe Debanhi Escobar, an 18-year-old who disappeared after attending a party in a Quinta in the municipality of Escobedo in Nuevo León.

Over the course of the days, Mr. Mario Escobar and Mrs. Dolores Bazaldúa have clung to the memory they have of their daughter to deal with the uncertainty and pain that their absence has left. However, more than 10 days after her disappearance, her friends and family have not lost hope of finding her, so, in addition to the investigations by the Attorney General's Office (FGE), volunteers have joined and continue with the exhaustive search to find her whereabouts.

This was detailed for Infobae Mexico by Paola 'X', who went from being Debanhi's partner in the right race to volunteering in the field searches that have been carried out to locate her. It is worth mentioning that for security reasons, the real name of the young activist has been omitted.

According to Paola, every day family, friends and volunteer collectives gather at the place where Debanhi disappeared, next to the Monterrey - Nuevo highway Laredo to carry out field searches in the surrounding areas, thus, from 10:30 in the morning the different research groups leave.

The first few days, the search focused on the mountains around the area where Debanhi was last seen, however, research and leaflets have spread to nearby municipalities such as Ciénega de las Flores or Salinas Victoria. In addition, volunteers with drones have supported with their tools to extend the search to places where you cannot enter.

After the days of searching, volunteers, friends and family return to the starting point at two or three in the afternoon to eat and then continue with the investigation. Although this is the technical process that they follow daily, the situation has touched the most sensitive fibers of all those people who day after day have gone out to look for Debanhi.

“What we feel as volunteers and as a collective that is supporting is a very tremendous thing, very strong. Seeing Debanhi's parents the moment we get to eat, everyone sits down, look for a place to settle down and we see them sad, tired without eating. Don Mario sometimes doesn't eat in a day or two because he's thinking about Debanhi, Doña Dolores too,” Paola “X”, a volunteer who participates in the search for Debanhi Escobar, told Infobae Mexico.

In addition, the young activist pointed out that in addition to the strength given to them by their daughter, Debanhi's parents have maintained hope thanks to the associations and volunteers who have joined the search and who have made them feel that they are not alone in these critical and painful moments they are going through.

Every day of searching is a bomb of emotions for Paula and all the people who have joined the search for the missing girl; leaving with the uncertainty of not knowing what they will find is a sad, painful and overwhelming situation, according to the statements of the member of the collective Mujeres Sin Monterrey.

“There comes a time when it's been two or three days and you feel stressed and frustrated because you find something that you know can mean something but you don't know what. It may not mean anything to Debanhi's case, but you don't know if it can help in another case,” Paula shared.

As a member of a feminist collective, Paola is clear that the case of Debanhi Escobar is not the only one active in the state of Nuevo León, although it has been one of the most popular in recent years. In this regard, she said that this is due to the fact that since her parents lost communication with her, they mobilized through social networks to locate her; by April 10, they were conducting searches on their own in the area where the young law student was last seen.

From Paola's perspective, another factor that influenced the case to become relevant was that state governor Samuel García and his wife Mariana Rodríguez, attended the site where Debanhi disappeared and, as is the custom of politicians and influencers, shared stories through their Instagram accounts, which caused the case to go viral because it is not every day that a governor is seen looking for a missing woman.

Despite this, Samuel García has been severely criticized and accused of taking advantage of the popularity of the case to gain approval among citizens. Similarly, the governor has been criticized for focusing attention on a single event when at least four other young people disappeared in Nuevo León in the the same period of time that the case of Debanhi Escobar arose.

The collective Mujeres Sin Fear Monterrey has supported various cases of disappearances and femicides in the state of Nuevo León, despite the constant repression they have suffered by the authorities. Although the activism they carry out does not interfere with the official investigations of the State Attorney General's Office (FGE), their work has been of great support to family members who have suffered the ravages of gender-based violence in the region.

Regarding the case of Debanhi Escobar, the member of the feminist collective, Paola “X”, explained that the Attorney General's Office (FGE) has had a direct and close relationship with Mr. Mario Escobar, father of the young woman, but that he had mentioned being satisfied with the performance of that dependency.

It has been around 288 hours since Debanhi last had contact with her parents and, although to a large extent the case has become media, unfortunately the longer time passes, the name, dreams and the case of the young woman gradually become one more figure of the large number of women who have disappeared in Nuevo Leon and Mexico.

Despite the grim picture, it is hoped that the inquiries will soon reveal Debanhi's whereabouts so that she can return home safely.

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