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Latin America Femicides

Femicide, the murder of a woman based on her gender in particular by a man, continues to plague Latin America. From Mexico to Argentina, femicides have skyrocketed only to be met with impunity at all levels of government.

But resistance is growing. The epidemic of gender violence has united women of all races under the rallying cry, "Ni Una Menos," or "Not One Less."

In the memory of Yuliana Samboni, Lucia Perez, Jennifer Antonio Carillo and the countless other victims of gender violence, teleSUR explores the roots of the femicide crisis, the failure of the justice system to address it and the resistance movements rising up to demand an end to violence against women.

 

If You Watch One Thing

 

Femicides on the Rise

 

The Trend of Femicides in Latin America on the Rise in 2017

A recent report released by Argentina's Wanda Taddei Institute found that 57 women had been killed so far in 2017, one of the highest rate in the region. While in 2016, one woman was estimated to die every 30 hours on average, now the time frame has lowered to every 18 hours. READ MORE

Women's Murderers Evade Justice as Femicide Surges in Guatemala

Femicide in Guatemala continues to spiral out of control, showing that specialized laws and personnel charged with fighting the epidemic of gender violence have so far not been able to do enough to tackle the fatal problem affecting the country’s women. READ MORE

Latin American Women’s Problem: We Keep Getting Murdered

Several studies have shown that Latin America is the worst place in the world to be a woman. A Gallup survey has shown that Latin American women feel they are not treated with respect and dignity. Dissatisfaction was highest in Colombia, Paraguay, El Salvador, Guatemala and Peru. READ MORE

Historic Struggles

 
In a precedent-setting case on sex slavery and systematic rape in the context of war, two former Guatemalan soldiers were sentenced to 120 and 240 years in prison after they were found guilty of raping women in the Sepur Zarco military base in the 1980s as part of a civil war-era military strategy.

'Available Meat:' Rape Used as Weapon of War in Guatemala

In 1999, three years after the peace accords were signed in Guatemala, the U.N.-backed Truth Commission investigating civil war atrocities found that rape was systematic and widespread during the conflict. According to the commission, “the rape of women, during torture or before being murdered, was a common practice aimed at destroying one of the most intimate and vulnerable aspects of the individual’s dignity.” READ MORE

Femicide in Mesoamerica Persists as Systemic Gender Violence

Femicide is not a matter of isolated incidents or individual “bad apples.” Instead, violence against women, especially indigenous women and women of color, has long been a structural component of establishing and maintaining capitalist and colonial states. READ MORE

Legislative Responses and Impunity

 

Justice Still Slow Despite Femicide Laws in Latin America

Latin America is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a woman, with seven out of 10 countries with the highest femicide rates coming from the region. A high rate of impunity — among other broader issues of security and inequality that make women vulnerable — contributes to a normalization of violence against women in these countries. READ MORE

Paraguay's Congressmen Gut Gender Violence Bill

Paraguay's lawmakers gutted a bill intended to address gender violence in the country—even removing the word "gender"—and rejected a US$20 million credit offer that would have funded the Ministry of Women. READ MORE

Brazilian Women Celebrate 10 Years of Law Against Femicide

The "Maria da Penha Law," named after a Brazilian woman who was repeatedly beaten and rendered a paraplegic by her husband, gave a legal definition to the crime of femicide—the killing of a woman by a man because of her gender—and created specialized jurisdictions and a support network to protect women from gender violence. READ MORE

Normalization of Rape Culture

 

Chile's Inflatable Doll Fiasco Exposes Deep-Seated Sexism

Chilean Economic Minister Luis Felipe Cespedes posed with an inflatable doll, a gift from a business leader who said that the "economy had to be stimulated like a woman." READ MORE

Social Resistance

 

Life in Leggings Movement Fights Gender Violence in Caribbean

A new feminist movement is growing in the Caribbean, from Barbados to Jamaica to Trinidad and Tobago, to speak out against gender violence in the region that women say is all too common. READ MORE

'Ni Una Menos': Feminism and Politics in Argentina

A historical national-wide demonstration marks a turning point in the development of a feminist movement and is likely to affect local politics. READ MORE

Uruguayan Women Protest Gender Violence, Demand Femicide Law

Uruguay joined the wave of outrage in the latest protests, using the slogan "Ni una menos," which translates to "Not one less" — a demand for not one more victim of femicide. READ MORE

Raising Awareness

 

Cafe Tacvba Refuses to Play Hit Song to Protest Gender Violence

Given the recent spotlight on femicide in Latin America, the band has decided to stop playing "La Ingrata," a song that ends with the murder of a woman. READ MORE

Latin America Hip Hop Unites Against Femicide, Gender Violence

The choice to focus on gender issues comes amid another challenging year for women's rights activists, with a series of femicide cases sparking outrage across the continent.  READ MORE

Jamaica's Tambourine Army Fights Gender Violence, Rape Culture

Women took to the street in Kingston to launch a movement to combat rape culture as women across the Caribbean rise up against gender violence. READ MORE

'Every 30 Hours' an Argentine Woman Dies: Documentary

Every 30 hours, a woman is killed in Argentina with almost 3,000 women killed in total since 2008, when the organization Casa del Encuentro started to monitor femicides. READ MORE

 
  • title='People protest the murder of Yuliana Andrea Samboni outside the apartment of suspect Rafael Uribe Noguera, in Bogota, Colombia, Dec. 5, 2016.' width="798" height="449">

    People protest the murder of Yuliana Andrea Samboni outside the apartment of suspect Rafael Uribe Noguera, in Bogota, Colombia, Dec. 5, 2016. | Photo EFE

  • title='A woman takes part in a demonstration to commemorate the U.N. International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in Mexico City, Nov. 25, 2016. ' width="798" height="449">

    A woman takes part in a demonstration to commemorate the U.N. International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in Mexico City, Nov. 25, 2016. | Photo Reuters

  • title='Women march against femicide in Argentina.' width="798" height="449">

    Women march against femicide in Argentina. | Photo AFP

  • title='An art installation on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach calls attention to femicide and the culture of gender violence in Brazil.' width="798" height="449">

    An art installation on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach calls attention to femicide and the culture of gender violence in Brazil. | Photo Reuters

  • title='Members of feminist organizations hold signs during a rally against gender violence and more than 57 femicides, or killing of women.' width="798" height="449">

    Members of feminist organizations hold signs during a rally against gender violence and more than 57 femicides, or killing of women. | Photo Reuters

  • title='A woman carries a sign during a demonstration to demand policies to prevent gender violence in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 19, 2016.' width="798" height="449">

    A woman carries a sign during a demonstration to demand policies to prevent gender violence in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 19, 2016. | Photo Reuters

  • title='Peruvian women march to demand an end to gender violence in the capital city of Lima, Nov. 26, 2016.' width="798" height="449">

    Peruvian women march to demand an end to gender violence in the capital city of Lima, Nov. 26, 2016. | Photo AFP

  • title='Women and girls at altar for Indigenous girl victim of femicide.' width="798" height="449">

    Women and girls at altar for Indigenous girl victim of femicide.

  • title='Women across Latin America took to the streets after a 16-year-old girl was raped and murdered in a coastal town of Argentina in October 2016.' width="798" height="449">

    Women across Latin America took to the streets after a 16-year-old girl was raped and murdered in a coastal town of Argentina in October 2016. | Photo Reuters

  • title='Argentine Women march in black against gruesome gang rape of a young girl.' width="798" height="449">

    Argentine Women march in black against gruesome gang rape of a young girl. | Photo Facción

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