[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1081 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1081

Expressing the sympathy of House of Representatives to the families of 
women and girls murdered in Guatemala and encouraging the Government of 
               Guatemala to bring an end to these crimes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 14, 2006

 Mr. Burton of Indiana (for himself, Mr. Lantos, Mr. Engel, Ms. Solis, 
and Ms. Lee) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION



Expressing the sympathy of House of Representatives to the families of 
women and girls murdered in Guatemala and encouraging the Government of 
               Guatemala to bring an end to these crimes.

Whereas Guatemalan women were among the victims during the 36-year Guatemalan 
        internal armed conflict which ended with the signing of the 1996 Peace 
        Accords and ushered in the process of reconciliation;
Whereas since 2001, more than 2,000 women and girls have been murdered in 
        Guatemala often proceeded by abduction, sexual assault, or brutal 
        mutilation;
Whereas from 2001 to 2006, the rate at which women have been murdered in 
        Guatemala has increased sharply, at a higher rate than the murder rate 
        of men in Guatemala during the same period;
Whereas the specific crime of femicide (the act of killing a woman where gender 
        is a significant motivation in the killing) increased from 303 in 2001 
        to 395 in the first eight months of 2006, and based on well-established 
        patterns, it appears that this number could surpass 600 by the end of 
        2006;
Whereas, according to reports from Guatemalan officials, most of the victims are 
        women ranging in age from 18 to 30 and many were abducted in broad 
        daylight in well-populated areas;
Whereas those murders have brought pain to the families and friends of the 
        victims as they struggle to cope with the loss of their loved ones and 
        the fact that the perpetrators of these heinous acts remain unknown to 
        the proper authorities;
Whereas according to data from Guatemala's Public Prosecutors Office, few 
        arrests and fewer convictions have taken place, leading to accusations 
        that police, prosecutors, forensics experts, and other state justice 
        officials have not brought the perpetrators to justice;
Whereas inadequate financial, human, and technical resources, as well as a lack 
        of forensic and technical expertise, has complicated the arrest and 
        prosecution of suspects;
Whereas the Guatemalan Human Rights Ombudsman reports that on ten separate 
        occasions police officers have been implicated in the murder of 
        Guatemalan women and recommends that such officers and other officials 
        be held accountable for their acts;
Whereas the Guatemalan Special Prosecutor for Crimes Against Women, in her 
        statements regarding the Guatemalan murder cases, reported that her 
        office has reviewed approximately 800 reports of domestic violence per 
        month, with some of those cases ending in murder;
Whereas the Government of Guatemala has undertaken efforts to prevent violence 
        against women, as evidenced by its ratification of the United Nations 
        Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading 
        Treatment or Punishment, the United Nations Convention on the 
        Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Convention 
        of Belem do Para, and other international human rights treaties, and the 
        enactment of laws and the creation of state institutions to promote and 
        protect the rights of women;
Whereas in June 2006 the Government of Guatemala successfully abolished the 
        ``Rape Law'' which had absolved perpetrators of criminal responsibility 
        for rape and certain other crimes of violence upon the perpetrator's 
        marriage with the victim;
Whereas the Government of Guatemala has created special police and prosecutorial 
        units to address the brutal murders of Guatemalan women;
Whereas Guatemalan legislators from various parties have joined lawmakers from 
        Mexico and Spain to form the Interparliamentary Network against 
        ``Femicide'';
Whereas the Government of Guatemala has taken steps to renegotiate an agreement 
        with the United Nations for the establishment of a Commission for 
        Investigation of Illegal Bodies and Clandestine Security Organizations 
        in Guatemala (CICIACS); and
Whereas continuing impunity for the crime of murder is a threat to the rule of 
        law, democracy, and stability in Guatemala: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses its sincerest condolences and deepest 
        sympathy to the families of women and girls murdered in 
        Guatemala;
            (2) expresses the solidarity of the people of the United 
        States with the people of Guatemala in the face of these tragic 
        and senseless acts;
            (3) condemns the ongoing abductions and murders of women 
        and girls in Guatemala which have been occurring with 
        increasing brutality and frequency;
            (4) recognizes the courageous struggle of the victims' 
        families in seeking justice for the victims;
            (5) urges the Government of Guatemala to recognize domestic 
        violence and sexual harassment as criminal acts;
            (6) encourages the Government of Guatemala to act with due 
        diligence in order to investigate promptly the killings of 
        women, prosecute those responsible, and eliminate the tolerance 
        of violence against women;
            (7) supports efforts to identify perpetrators and unknown 
        victims through forensic analysis, including DNA testing, such 
        as the National Institute for Forensic Science in Guatemala 
        (INACIF) and encourages such efforts to be conducted by 
        independent, impartial experts;
            (8) urges the President and Secretary of State to continue 
        to express support for the efforts of the victims' families and 
        loved ones 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;
            (9) encourages the Secretary of State to urge the 
        Government of Guatemala to honor and dignify the victims of the 
        brutal murders and to continue to include in the Department of 
        State's annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 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 women and girls in 
        Guatemala;
            (10) encourages the Secretary of State to urge the 
        Government of Guatemala to hold accountable those law 
        enforcement and judicial officials whose failure to investigate 
        and prosecute the murders adequately, whether through 
        negligence, omission, or abuse, has led to impunity for these 
        crimes;
            (11) encourages the Secretary of State to support and urge 
        the Government of Guatemala to take measures to ensure that the 
        special Guatemalan police and prosecutorial units have an 
        adequate number of appropriately trained personnel with 
        sufficient resources to conduct thorough and proper 
        investigations and prosecutions that reflect the gravity and 
        magnitude of this national security crisis;
            (12) recommends that the United States Ambassador to 
        Guatemala meet with the families of the victims, women's rights 
        organizations, and Guatemalan officials responsible for 
        investigating these crimes and preventing such future crimes; 
        and
            (13) recommends that the Secretary of State develop a 
        comprehensive plan to address and combat the growing problem of 
        violence against women in Latin America.
                                 <all>