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Courtney Connors

To Fight Femicide in Guatemala, New Law, But Same Culture (SB#4) - 0 views

  • Women are being tortured, raped and murdered on a regular basis, with total or almost total impunity, regardless of numerous and unanimous claims for justice from the civil society and even from the international community
    • Courtney Connors
       
      It is going to take more than "urging the Guatemalan Government" to make effective changes for them to actually occur. International sanctions for war crimes against human rights must take place.
  • gone unpunished mainly because of negligence and the lack of effective investigation and prevention strategies of the Guatemalan authorities.
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Guatemalan
  • The CEDAW Committee and the European Parliament have both urged the Guatemalan government to take all necessary steps to effectively combat violence against women, ensuring full respect for human rights
  • April 9, 2008 the Guatemalan Congress passed the Law against Femicide and other Forms of Violence against Women (Decree 22-2008), that aims to severely punish any kind of gender-based violence, guaranteeing the life, freedom, integrity, dignity and equality of all women, in the private or public sphere, promoting and implementing strategies to prevent and eradicate femicide and any kind of physical, psychological, sexual or economic violence against women.   
  • Decree literally recognizes that the violence and discrimination against women in the country has flourished because of the "power inequality between men and women in the social, economic, legal, political, cultural and family spheres." 
  • The Law typifies femicide as a crime and defines it as the murder of a woman committed because of her gender within a context of unequal exercise of power; it imposes punishments that range from 25 to 50 years imprisonment.
  • "forced prostitution and denying [a woman] the right to use contraceptive methods, whether natural or hormonal, or taking measures to prevent sexually transmitted infections" are considered sexual violence crimes. 
  • 25% of women consider their partner's disapproval as a reason for not using a family planning method. 
  • the dominant 'macho culture' in Guatemala will make it difficult to implement the law."
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    Although the previously bookmarked article seeks to establish an outline of the human or women rights violations that occur within Guatemala, here, author Karim Velasco, sheds light upon newly distinguished laws and explains despite their hopeful goals, why they have ceased to work effectively. She argues that because of the "lack of effective investigation and prevention strategies of the Guatemalan authorities", women continue to be raped, tortured, and murdered at an increasing rate. Because of pressures from the European Parliament to abide by human rights laws, "on April 9, 2008, Guatemalan Congressed passed the 'Law Against Femicide and other Forms of Violence against Women Act' to severely punish any kind of gender-based violence..." However, because the violence stems from the power inequality between men and women in the first place, there is little belief or evidence that this Act will be implemented or strongly enforced by the men in power who seek to represent masculinity or display a constant idea of machismo.
Jackie Moran

EL SALVADOR: More Troops on the Streets to Fight Crime - IPS ipsnews.net - 0 views

    • Jackie Moran
       
      This article connects to the themes of the class because it addresses the topic of crime, specifically in El Salvador, and the steps taken to help stop it. Violence and crime are serious issues in many Latin American countries, and El Salvador is no exception. However, El Salvador's government has recognized it as a grave issue within the streets of the country, therefore action is being taken to combat the problem.
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    The article highlights how President Funes of El Salvador decided to send 2,500 army troops to patrol the streets of the country in an effort to combat crime. The soldiers will patrol the streets of 19 municipalities that have the highest crime rates. El Salvador one of the three Central American countries that have the highest rates of non-political violence in the world. (Guatemala and Honduras are the other two countries)
liz solomon

Drug Trade, Violent Gangs Pose Grave Danger - Committee to Protect Journalists - 1 views

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    Criminal Organizations in Brazil, Mexico, Columbia, El Salvador, and Guatemala have increased their power over the last decade, weakening political stability and democracy of Latin America. Surprisingly, the journalists who cover the crimes are their targets. the number of killings, attacks, and disappearances have increased causing the government to become unable to assure safety from the paramilitary gangsters in Brazil, guerillas in Colombia, and street gangs in El Salvador and Guatemala. As revenge, journalists are taking on self-censorship. Although the crime rate has decreased, the fight against crime requires domestic and international support. Better legal structure and diminishing criminal groups will help create independent media outlets.
Sam Obstfeld

RELIGION: Ethics - The Best Weapon Against Domestic Violence - IPS ipsnews.net - 0 views

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    This article is about the Church in Bogotá, Colombia heading an interfaith dialogue on domestic violence with delegates from 16 countries and 13 religious denominations. The basic idea of the conference was that religious leaders should join together to fight domestic violence from their pulpits.
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