In response to the increasing murders and kidnappings of women in the state of Mexico, the federal government of Mexico issued a “gender based alert.” The alert went out for 11 cities in that state and urges authorities to look into those crimes.
The state of Mexico is a greatly populated region that encompasses Mexico City which, in recent years, has seen an increase in crimes against women.
The alert was issued to the cities of Ecatepec, Nezahualcoyotl, Toluca, Chimalhuacan, Chalco, Valle de Chalco, Cuautitlan Izcalli, Tultitlan, Naucalpan, Ixtapaluca and Tlanepantla. These cities are all located near Mexico City.
The alert is a measure to force local, state and federal authorities look into the rising crimes against women in a specific fashion. It classifies them separately from other violent crimes, information released by Mexico’s Secretariat of the Interior (SEGOB) revealed.
“The Mexican government places the greatest importance of this preventive measure which brings a unique opportunity to map out coordinated actions that guarantee the right of women to have a life without violence,” a statement by SEGOB in Spanish revealed.
In addition to pressure on authorities, the alert also calls for outreach programs to inform the public about the services and resources available to prevent crimes against women. It also provides for assistance to victims of crime.
The alert came in result to a request for help from the federal government by Eruviel Avila, the governor of the State of Mexico. Avila has been singled out by local news outlets for trying to minimize the violence against women.
Mexico’s SinEmbargo.Mx reported that 40 percent of the murders of women that have taken place under Avila’s administration have not been investigated.
SinEmbargo.mx reported that little has been accomplished in the more than 26,000 complaints of crimes against women that have been reported from 2005 to 2014. The following day, other states began to inquire about implementing similar measures.
According to the National Feminicide Citizens Observatory in Mexico (OCNF), from 2011 to 2013, 840 women have been murdered in the State of Mexico and only 145 were investigated as “feminicides”.
The State of Mexico is the second area to be publicly known for feminicides. As Breitbart Texas previously reported, the border city of Juarez has been going through a rash of kidnappings and gruesome murders of women.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award winning journalist with Breitbart Texas you can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook.