Guerrero: Maria Luisa Ortiz Arenas from State Network of Feminist Activists Murdered

Maria Luisa Ortiz Arenas (@Twitter)

On March 6th, Maria Luisa Ortiz Arenas, 42, member of the State Network of Feminist Activists, was found murdered, in the community of Mezcaltepec, municipality of Taxco, Guerrero. She had been reported missing by her relatives since March 2nd, the date on which she was to travel from Chilpancingo to Taxco, where she was originally from.

The Guerrero Coordination Group (GCG) reported that the State Attorney General’s Office will investigate her death under the femicide protocol and that “a specialized team will focus on clarifying the incident.”

Feminists like Maria Luisa Garfias Marin and Marina Reyna Aguilar demanded justice and that the authorities investigate the act as femicide. The state has registered at least 40 femicides in this year, but the investigation protocol has not been followed up on, coupled with persistent impunity.

On March 8th, within the framework of International Women’s Day, the forum “Tribunal for Women’s Rights: The Shining Faces of Justice” took place in Chilpancingo. Abel Barrera Hernandez, director of the Montaña Tlachinollan Human Rights Center, organizer of the forum, condemned the murder of Maria Luisa Ortiz said that “we cannot be so optimistic and ring out the bells, we have to keep raising our voices, standing up to the perpetrators and demanding that the authorities do their job.”

For more information in Spanish:

Los rostros luminosos de la justicia (Tlachinollan, Bajo Palabra, 6 de marzo de 2018)

Asesinan en Guerrero a la activista María Luisa Ortiz; CNDH alerta sobre el incremento de feminicidios (Animal Político, 6 de marzo de 2018)

Localizan cuerpo de activista en Guerrero (La Jornada, 6 de marzo de 2018)

Asesinan en Taxco a activista por los derechos dela mujer María Luisa Ortiz; estaba desaparecida (El Sur, 6 de marzo de 2018)

Matan a la luchadora social María Luisa Ortiz Arenas (La Jornada, 7 de marzo de 2018)

For more information from SIPAZ:

Guerrero: feminicidios a la alza en 2017 (11 de enero de 2018)

Guerrero : emiten Alerta de Género en 8 municipios del estado (24 de junio de 2017)