(6) For example, on 24 June 2005 Marta Olga Caseros Batres's body was found in zone 6 of Guatemala City. The alarming number of killings and lack of an effective government response has also caught the attention of the international community and prompted demonstrations across Latin America and hearings in the European Parliament and the US Congress. 5 in Mixco, as after that I didn't feel like going. Amnesty International believes that collection of and reference to such data is a necessary requirement for the development of sound policies to combat gender-based violence. It is concerned about the insufficient efforts to conduct thorough investigations, the absence of protection measures for witnesses, victims' families and the lack of information and data regarding the cases, the causes of violence and the profiles of the victims.(9). (8) Most recently in the US, on 8 May 2006, 117 members of the US Congress signed a letter in which they urged the US State Department to call on the Guatemalan government to take prompt and effective action to address the killings of women and that the State Department provide technical assistance to promote the proper investigation, prosecution and punishment of these crimes. Ministerio Público, www.mp.lex.gob.gt/memorias, (22) La Justicia en Guatemala: Un Largo Camino por Recorrer. Reporting gang activities to police puts a person in greater danger because it aggrevates the gang, challenges their authority, and shows disrespect. Then, under the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), those who seek asylum in the U . UN High Commissioner for Human Rights following her visit to Guatemala, 27 May 2006.(45). . Hundreds of corrupt or ineffective police officers, prosecutors, judges, and military officials have been investigated and dismissed. The Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights visited Guatemala in September 2004 and issued recommendations following her visit (see www.cidh.org/women/20.04.htm). (6) Despite considerable national and international concern including two visits and subsequent recommendations by the United Nations and Inter-American Commission special rapporteurs on Women women and girls continue to be murdered with impunity in Guatemala. (9) www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/cedaw35/cc/Guatemala_rev.pdf, (10) Based on a population of 12 million, cited in United Nations Development Programme, Human Development Report, 2005. While the PNC collects statistics on complaints of rape, information as to whether the victim experienced sexual violence prior to being killed is not processed, except in cases where the cause of death was the rape itself (which occurred in one case during 2005). (38) A draft bill on sexual harassment in the workplace was sent to Congress in 2002. (45) www.unhchr.ch/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/C7F2A41A172BC438C125717D0056605A?opendocument. GUATEMALA CITY. WASHINGTON, D.C. U.S. This places Guatemala amongst the countries with the highest murder rates in Latin America, with approximately 44 murders per 100,000 inhabitants. In the absence of thorough investigations, various non governmental organizations (NGOs) and other groups have presented their own investigations and analysis regarding the reasons behind the killings. (33) The opinion includes the proposal to criminalize violence against women in the family (violencia intrafamiliar), to remove the legal provision that it is only a criminal offence to have sexual relations with a minor as long as the victim is considered "honest" (una mujer honesta),(34) to abolish Article 200 which waives criminal responsibility for rape and certain other crimes of sexual violence (if the victim is more than 12 years old) upon the perpetrator's marriage with the victim and to extend the definition of rape, including by making marital rape a criminal offence. (44) It was the third time the offices of the Women's Sector had been broken into. GUATEMALA CITY (AP) The United States agreed Monday to train members of a Guatemalan task force responsible for protecting the country's borders and putting a brake on uncontrolled migration. While Amnesty International was informed that talks are underway within the Commission to Address Femicide to create a database which would record and cross-reference cases of disappeared women and girls with the discovery of dead bodies, at the time of writing no such mechanism existed. (32) Interview with head of the Central morgue, 5 April 2006. (18) As noted by the PDH no arrests were made in 97% of cases,(19) more than 70% of the cases have not been investigated and the motive for the killing is unknown. Nor do police exist in a vacuum; permanent change can only take place within broader efforts to battle corruption and favouritism within the justice system as a whole. Continued lack of effective protection measures means that in many cases survivors of gender-based violence, their families and witnesses are too afraid to give testimony. Drug traffickers, including Mexican cartels, move at will across porous borders, while criminal gangs dominate many urban areas. (40) In cases that occurred prior to December 2005, however, Article 200 can still apply. Then after two hours of searching everywhere I went back to the police station to see if they had any newsthey claimed I hadn't reported anything and so they'd done nothing. 2630) which proposes the abolition of certain discriminatory provisions and the criminalization of other acts of violence against women, without further delay. The organization is concerned, however, that four years after the original reform proposal was presented to Congress, and after two previous favourable opinions, without the necessary political will and momentum, these reforms may yet again stall at the approval stage in Congress. Serious deficiencies were reported in relation to the effectiveness of the investigation. In the case of Cristina Hernndez (see first page) the police failed to respond to the desperate pleas of her family despite neighbours having witnessed her abduction. Guatemala Executive Summary The 25,000 members of the National Civil Police (PNC) are on the front lines of Guatemala's battle against crime. (15) Many victims are raped, tortured or mutilated before being killed. Guatemala On July 5, 2005, officials from the Guatemalan government's human rights office (PDH - Procuradura de Derechos Humanos) entered a deteriorating, rat-infested munitions depot in downtown Guatemala City to investigate complaints about improperly-stored explosives. The investigator said they thought Claudina was a nobody because she was wearing sandals and a belly button ring. Police Reform in Guatemala: Obstacles and Opportunities, Curtain Falls on Guatemalas International Commission against Impunity. (13) Many of the concerns expressed in this report apply equally to the failure to adequately investigate murders whether of men or women. It is difficult to establish a clear picture regarding the extent of the violence perpetrated against women or to draw conclusions regarding the identity or the motives of the perpetrators due to the poor quality of investigations and the absence of documentation regarding gender-based violence suffered by the victim prior to being killed. Francisca López, aged 13, was knifed to death on 2 November 2005 in Guatemala City. Guatemala has one of the highest homicide rates in the hemisphere, reaching 48 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2008. Certain investigative units have demonstrated that the police can given the proper resources, training and supervision solve complex crimes. The spent shells were reportedly never submitted as part of the investigation. In a survey carried out in 2021, around 13 percent of respondents in Ecuador said that they had been asked or had to pay a bribe in interactions with . Without strong and consistent backing from the national government, business, civil society and the international community, the lessons learned from these pilot projects may be lost before they can be perfected and replicated. When Police Repression is Not Enough: A U.S. Local human rights organisations believe the break-in was linked to the prominent role played by the Women's Sector in calling for an end to violence against women in Guatemala. Those cities are also the location of two model precincts, supported by the U.S. government, which finances the vetting and training of police and supports programs designed to strengthen police-community collaboration. (17) The Prosecutor's Office for Crimes against Life informed AI that during 2005 it secured 11convictions in cases of murdered women. Since 2007, the CICIG has supported corruption probes that resulted in the indictment of Guatemala's former president and vice president; the [] Relatives of a number of victims have complained that state investigators have been quick to classify their family members as gang members, prostitutes or involved in drug trafficking and in so doing, relate their death to suspected stereotypical behaviour. To stem the violence that kills thousands of Guatemalans each year, the government must find the resources and will to carry out long-stalled reforms of the national police. Then I went to San Juan police station and begged the police to try to stop their car. Of particular importance is the tendency to discredit the victims by placing the blame for their deaths on their conduct or background. Guatemala lacks a land registration system, creating an obstacle to landowners and paving the way for abuses, fraud, and illegalities (BTI 2016). The family of Cristina Hernndez took part in the demonstration, carrying a banner with a photo of Cristina and appearing in the media. Comisión de la Mujer del Congreso de la República. However, with the support of women's NGOs some families have become increasingly vocal in their pursuit for justice. Immediate, coordinated, full and effective investigations into all cases of abduction and murder of women and girls, ensuring that international standards, in particular in relation to crime scene investigation and autopsies, are followed; Urgent search mechanisms in cases of women and girls reported missing as well as a comprehensive data collection system of women reported missing; The incorporation of a gender perspective into the analysis and treatment of violence against women in policing and judicial practice, including the introduction of standard guidelines and procedures to cover all stages of criminal investigations; Promotion of a campaign for zero tolerance of acts of violence against women and that those responsible, including members of the security forces and non-state actors, will be brought to justice; The removal of discriminatory legislation in line with international standards on violence against women. After repeated requests, including by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, in February 2006 one police officer was finally stationed outside her home during the day from Monday to Friday. Pending the final decision as to the legal validity of the Article, in cases of rape of minors (over 12 years old), criminal responsibility cannot be waived with the marriage of the rape victim and her rapist. On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, 25 November 2005, numerous families took part in demonstrations in the capital, calling on the authorities to put an end to the impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of violence against women. 2012, 7). 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