“Lucharemos de norte a sur y de este a oeste, cueste lo que cueste,” men shouted shoulder-to-shoulder with fists raised in the air. “From North to South to East to West, we will fight no matter what the cost.”

IMF general secretary Marcello Malentacchi shouted over the crowd, “Internationally speaking, you are not alone. We are trying to do everything we can to help rescue your loved ones, to investigate what went wrong and to help prevent tragedies like this in the future.”

“We cannot let anyone forget what happened here a year ago, these types of accidents are completely foreseeable and avoidable.”

The international delegation took the message of the widows and miners of Pasta de Conchos to the new Labour Minister, Javier Lozano Alarcón, to discuss the countries growing labour unrest and the government’s brut force in labour affairs.

Specifically, the delegation addressed:

• Recovery of the victims. Bringing in specialized recovery units from around the world to bring the bodies back to their families.
• An investigation into what led up to the explosion and post-blast problems, conducted by the ILO.
• All union affairs must be dealt with through the democratic processes of the membership. This is non-negotiable.

Labour Minister Javier Lozano Alarcón assured the delegation that he would go to all lengths to retrieve the bodies of those killed in the Pasta de Conchos explosion and that he agreed to work with the ILO on an investigation and would do what he could to encourage the company to comply as well.

The IMF, which represents 25 million workers globally, has filed a complaint with the ILO against the Mexican government citing violations of ILO convention 87. For more information about IMF’s work with the SNTMMSRM, go to: www.imfmetal.org/Mexico