The Femicides in Ciudad Juárez

 

Since 1993, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, has been the epicenter of an extremely severe gender-based violence crisis, internationally known as "the dead women of Juárez." This involves a systematic pattern of murders of women and girls, characterized by sexual brutality, near-total impunity, and state inaction.

The victims, often young workers from the maquiladora industry and from vulnerable sectors, have been subjected to kidnapping, torture, sexual violence, and murder. Investigations have been marked by profound deficiencies: negligence, loss of evidence, torture of false suspects, and a persistent culture of misogyny and corruption that has allowed most crimes to go unpunished.

The response has not been one of pain alone. Mothers and relatives of the victims, along with civil society organizations like "Nuestras Hijas de Regreso a Casa," have led a historic fight for truth and justice. Their activism has brought the case to the international arena and led to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights condemning the Mexican state for its responsibility in the femicides, as in the emblematic "Campo Algodonero" case.

Despite the rulings and global attention, the violence persists. Ciudad Juárez remains a territory where organized crime, impunity, and a deeply entrenched structure of gender-based violence converge, making it a tragic symbol of female vulnerability and the struggle for human rights worldwide.