CC.OO and UGT demand the recovery of the bodies of the Pasta de Conchos victims

Spain: The Spanish trade unions, Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) and the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT), along with the International Metalworkers' Federation, visited the Mexican Embassy in Spain on Tuesday 15 July to demand the recovery of the bodies of the miners killed in the Pasta de Conchos disaster in Mexico on 19 February 2006.

At the meeting, attended by the IMF's Assistant General Secretary, Fernando Lopes, union representatives delivered documents with details of the disaster at Grupo México's mine and demanded that the 63 bodies remaining underground should be recovered and handed over to their families.

A petition with more than 4,000 signatures was delivered to the Mexican Embassy. The petition was organised by the CCOO and the FIA-UGT in solidarity with the families of the dead. It demands that the company and the government take decisive action to recover the bodies of the dead workers and clarify the causes of the accident.

The CCOO's Mining and Metalworking Federation announced it was joining this struggle because "it understands that the recovery of the workers would not only alleviate the suffering of the families that are living in the area, but would also help to clarify the causes of the accident so that conclusions can be drawn from it and so that it does not happen again."

The federation has been in contact with the Hunosa mining company, which participated in the Rescue Brigade that investigated the scene of the accident in May 2006. The company says it is technically possible to recover the 63 bodies buried inside the mine, but the operation will require the cooperation of the company and the Mexican government.

The Spanish trade unions, affiliated to the IMF, visited the Mexican Embassy, because they believe it is necessary to take action to put pressure on the company and the Mexican government to consider the option of recovering the workers' bodies.