CUERNAVACA, Mexico (AP) -- More than 600 people led by a Mexican poet whose son was killed by suspected drug traffickers set off on a march Thursday from the resort city of Cuernavaca to Mexico City to protest the country's unrelenting gang violence.
The group carrying signs reading "Stop the War," Mexican flags and photos of poet Javier Sicilia's slain son began marching Thursday. They are expected to arrive in Mexico City's Zocalo square Sunday.
The group hopes more people will join the silent march along the 50-mile (80-kilometer) route.
Sicilia's son Juan Francisco was killed March 28 along with six other people. Three alleged cartel members have been arrested in the slayings.
Mexico's drug war has claimed more than 34,600 lives since December 2006.
In a statement Thursday, Calderon's office expressed "its respect for the march ... and each and every person who is participating in it."
The march "revitalizes citizen action as a fundamental means for overcoming inertia and promoting the decisive actions and changes our country needs on fundamental issues like security and justice," it said.
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