CUIDAD JUAREZ, Mexico -- In Mexico, families filled cemeteries to mark ‘Dia de los Muertos,’ or the Day of the Dead. One of the largest gatherings took place right on the border, in Cuidad Juarez, where more than 2,000 people have been murdered in 2009.
The path to the city cemetery in Juarez is well-traveled these days. Mourners gather here daily to bury murdered loved ones.
Many Mexicans view death is as a natural progression of life. But in Juarez, drug violence has disturbed the natural order of things, forcing hundreds of parents to bury their children.
Beto Compean's wife remembers the last smile he gave her before dying. Relatives told us a known gang member murdered the mechanic.
They showed us a photo of the suspect. They're pressuring police to pick him up. Most of the murders in Juarez remain unsolved and go unpunished.
In another part of the cemetery, teenage girls told us they've buried half a dozen friends this year. Some were young men recruited by drug cartels to fight a turf battle.
There are so many killings, and the morgue is filling up so quickly. Every week, city workers bring the bodies of those people who are unidentified or unclaimed to this spot where they are buried in unmarked graves.
The cemetery caretaker told us new plots now extend to the edge of the property, and judging by the freshly dug graves, nobody expects the bloodshed in Juarez to end soon.
