[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 90 Introduced in House (IH)]
109th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 90
Conveying the sympathy of Congress to the families of the young women
murdered in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, and encouraging increased
United States involvement in bringing an end to these crimes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Ms. Solis (for herself, Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida, Mrs. Capps,
Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. Ramstad, Mr. Reyes, and Mr. Lantos) submitted the
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
International Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Conveying the sympathy of Congress to the families of the young women
murdered in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, and encouraging increased
United States involvement in bringing an end to these crimes.
Whereas the Mexican cities of Ciudad Juarez and Chihuahua have been plagued with
the abduction, sexual assault, and brutal murders of more than 370 young
women since 1993;
Whereas there have been at least 30 murders of women in Ciudad Juarez and the
city of Chihuahua since 2004;
Whereas at least 137 of the victims were sexually assaulted prior to their
murders;
Whereas more than half of the victims are women and girls between the ages of 13
and 22, and many were abducted in broad daylight in well-populated
areas;
Whereas these murders have brought pain to the families and friends of the
victims on both sides of the border as they struggle to cope with the
loss of their loved ones;
Whereas many of the victims have yet to be positively identified;
Whereas the perpetrators of most of these heinous acts remain unknown;
Whereas the Mexican Federal Government has taken steps to prevent these
abductions and murders in Ciudad Juarez, including setting up a
commission to coordinate Federal and State efforts, establishing a 40-
point plan, appointing a special commissioner, and appointing a special
prosecutor;
Whereas the Federal special prosecutor, in her ongoing review of the Ciudad
Juarez murder investigations, found evidence that over 100 police,
prosecutors, forensics experts, and other State of Chihuahua justice
officials failed to properly investigate the crimes, and recommended
that they be held accountable for their acts of negligence, abuse of
authority, and omission;
Whereas in 2003 the El Paso Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and the El Paso Police Department began providing Mexican Federal,
State, and municipal law enforcement authorities with training in
investigation techniques and methods;
Whereas the United States Agency for International Development has begun
providing assistance to the State of Chihuahua for judicial reform;
Whereas the government of the State of Chihuahua has jurisdiction over these
crimes;
Whereas the Governor and Attorney General of the State of Chihuahua have
expressed willingness to collaborate with the Mexican Federal Government
and United States officials in addressing these crimes;
Whereas the Department of State has provided consular services on behalf of the
American citizen and her husband who were tortured into confessing to
one of the murders;
Whereas Mexico is a party to the following international treaties and
declarations that relate to abductions and murders: the Charter of the
Organization of American States, the American Convention on Human
Rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Elimination
of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the United Nations
Declaration on Violence Against Women, the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, the Convention of Belem do Para, the Inter-American
Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture, the Inter-American Convention
on Forced Disappearance, and the United Nations Declaration on the
Protection of All Persons From Enforced Disappearance; and
Whereas continuing impunity for these crimes is a threat to the rule of law in
Mexico: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That Congress--
(1) condemns the ongoing abductions and murders of young
women in Ciudad Juarez and the city of Chihuahua in the State
of Chihuahua, Mexico, since 1993;
(2) expresses its sincerest condolences and deepest
sympathy to the families of the victims of these murders;
(3) recognizes the courageous struggle of the victims'
families in seeking justice for the victims;
(4) urges the President and Secretary of State to
incorporate the investigative and preventative efforts of the
Mexican Government in the bilateral agenda between the
Governments of Mexico and the United States and to continue to
express concern over these abductions and murders to the
Government of Mexico;
(5) urges the President and Secretary of State to continue
to express support for the efforts of the victims' families to
seek justice for the victims, to express concern relating to
the continued harassment of these families and the human rights
defenders with whom they work, and to express concern with
respect to impediments in the ability of the families to
receive prompt and accurate information in their cases;
(6) supports efforts to identify unknown victims through
forensic analysis, including DNA testing, conducted by
independent, impartial experts who are sensitive to the special
needs and concerns of the victims' families, as well as efforts
to make these services available to any families who have
doubts about the results of prior forensic testing;
(7) condemns the use of torture as a means of investigation
into these crimes;
(8) encourages the Secretary of State to continue to
include in the annual Country Report on Human Rights of the
Department of State all instances of improper investigatory
methods, threats against human rights activists, and the use of
torture with respect to cases involving the murder and
abduction of young women in the State of Chihuahua;
(9) encourages the Secretary of State to urge the
Government of Mexico and the State of Chihuahua to review the
cases of murdered women in which those accused or convicted of
murder have credibly alleged they were tortured or forced by a
state agent to confess to the crime;
(10) strongly recommends that the United States Ambassador
to Mexico visit Ciudad Juarez and the city of Chihuahua for the
purpose of meeting with the families of the victims, women's
rights organizations, and Mexican Federal and State officials
responsible for investigating these crimes and preventing
future such crimes;
(11) encourages the Secretary of State to urge the
Government of Mexico to ensure fair and proper judicial
proceedings for the individuals who are accused of these
abductions and murders and to impose appropriate punishment for
those individuals subsequently determined to be guilty of such
crimes;
(12) encourages the Secretary of State to urge the State of
Chihuahua to hold accountable those law enforcement officials
whose failure to adequately investigate the murders, whether
through negligence, omission, or abuse, has led to impunity for
these crimes;
(13) recognizes the special prosecutor has begun to review
cases and encourages the expansion of her mission to include
the city of Chihuahua;
(14) strongly supports the work of the special commissioner
to prevent violence against women in Ciudad Juarez and
Chihuahua City;
(15) condemns all senseless acts of violence in all parts
of the world and, in particular, violence against women; and
(16) expresses the solidarity of the people of the United
States with the people of Mexico in the face of these tragic
and senseless acts.
<all>