Our Parents’ Bones Campaign
The Quest of the Children of the Disappeared During the Salvadoran War
Over 10,000 women and men are known as “Los Desaparecidos,” or “the Disappeared,” in El Salvador. They were the victims of kidnapping by military forces associated with the Salvadoran Government during the civil war that took place between 1979 and 1992. An estimated 75,000 people died during this war. These people were taken from their jobs, homes, places of worship and open spaces throughout the day and night, when the country was in a state of siege. They were abducted without any formal charge, trial or adjudication in accordance with Salvadoran or international laws. Their families never saw them again – dead or alive.
“Our Parents’ Bones Campaign” is our quest for the remains of our parents. It is an international campaign that will be launched in the United States, led by us, Salvadoran-Americans who survived our mother or our father or both because they were victims of forced disappearance by the Salvadoran military.
Our campaign works with organizations in El Salvador who are also relatives of disappeared Salvadorans, like Pro-Memoria Histórica and with other organizations in the U.S. Our effort will 1) seek the remains of our parents, give them sacred burial, and bring healing and closure to our lives; 2) bring the voice of Salvadoran-Americans and other U.S. leaders to demand the opening of files from the military to identify the places where the bodies of the disappeared were buried; 3) contribute to the end of institutional impunity prevalent in the structures of the military and in the Salvadoran government; 4) help build a democratic El Salvador where the post-war reconciliation of society is based on truth.
– If you have lost a parent in the war of El Salvador, please contact us.
– If you are an advocate for human rights and justice, please join us in this effort – we need every voice.
– If you want to educate your community in any U.S. city or town, contact us. We will help you organize activities.
– If you want to help with your financial generosity, please donate and help us strengthen our work.
– If you want to join in a delegation to El Salvador and participate in our activities, please contact us.
The time has come for the resolution of the cases of victims of forced disappearances in El Salvador. Never again. No country and no people should be subject to arbitrary detention and forced disappearances because of people’s beliefs, religion, or membership in any political or social organization. We say no to impunity. We, the children of the Disappeared assert: “We have the right to know: where are our parents’ bones?”