GENEVA, 22 August – Earlier this month, a core group of UN special procedures urgently contacted the Mexican Government to draw its attention to the current situation of violence against women, girls, and adolescents in the state of Guerrero, which points to the existence of a practice of enforced disappearance of women and girls.
This group includes the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women and Girls, its Causes and Consequences; the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; the Special Rapporteur on the Sale, Sexual Exploitation, and Sexual Abuse of Children; the Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; and the Working Group on Discrimination Against Women and Girls.
The response of the United Nations Special Procedures was prompted by a communication sent by IDHEAS Strategic Litigation in Human Rights, the Mexican Forensic Anthropology Team (EMAF), and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), who, with the technical support of Justice Rapid Response (JRR), conducted a documentation mission in February 2023 on the disappearances of women and girls in the state of Guerrero, Mexico. This followed the presentation of a report titled «Disappearances of Women and Gender-Based Violence in Guerrero: The Overlooked Side of the War on Drugs» during the 2023 session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.
The joint statement of UN special procedures also highlights the absence of a timely response from authorities in searching for and investigating reports of enforced disappearance of women and girls and the near-total impunity in which these events remain. This grave situation occurs within a broader context of gender-based violence against women and girls in the state of Guerrero and the alarming context of enforced disappearances, particularly of women and girls, in Mexico over the past three decades.
This speaks to the credibility and the impact of CSOs involved in accountability efforts for international crimes and gross human rights violations.
JRR remains committed to work with CSOs such as IDHEAS and assist them with technical expertise to bolster their work in promoting the rights and access to justice of victims and survivors.