•HRES 100 IH 
sharply, at a higher rate than the murder rate of men 
in Guatemala during the same period; 
Whereas the number of murders of Guatemalan women and 
girls has increased significantly from 303 in 2001 to 
more than 500 in 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 the manner and rate of murders of Guatemalan 
women and girls suggests an increase in gender based 
killings, an extreme form of violence against women that 
can include torture, mutilation, and sexual violence; 
Whereas, according to data from Guatemala’s Public Pros-
ecutors Office, few arrests and fewer convictions have 
taken place, leading to accusations that police, prosecu-
tors, forensics experts, and other state justice officials 
have not brought the perpetrators to justice; 
Whereas inadequate financial, human, and technical re-
sources, as well as a lack of forensic and technical exper-
tise, has complicated the arrest and prosecution of sus-
pects; 
Whereas the Guatemalan Human Rights Ombudsman reports 
that on ten separate occasions police officers have been 
implicated in the murder of Guatemalan women and girls 
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 Guate-
malan murder cases, reported that her office has re-
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viewed approximately 800 reports of domestic violence 
per month, with some of those cases ending in murder; 
Whereas the Government of Guatemala has undertaken ef-
forts to prevent violence against women, as evidenced by 
its ratification of the United Nations Convention Against 
Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treat-
ment 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 suc-
cessfully abolished the ‘‘Rape Law’’ which had absolved 
perpetrators of criminal responsibility for rape and cer-
tain other crimes of violence upon the perpetrator’s mar-
riage with the victim; 
Whereas the Government of Guatemala has created special 
police and prosecutorial units to address the brutal mur-
ders of Guatemalan women and girls; 
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 and the United Na-
tions recently signed an agreement to establish the Inter-
national Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala 
(CICIG), which has a mandate to investigate and pro-
mote prosecution of illegal security groups and clandes-
tine security organizations that function with impunity 
and are suspected of attacking human rights defenders, 
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and other crimes that have undermined overall security 
in Guatemala; 
Whereas murders of Guatemalan women and girls 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 re-
main unknown to the proper authorities; 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 mur-
ders of women and girls in Guatemala which have 
been occurring with increasing brutality and fre-
quency; 
(4) recognizes the courageous struggle of the 
victims’ families in seeking justice for the victims; 
(5) urges the Government of Guatemala to rec-
ognize domestic violence and sexual harassment as 
criminal acts; 
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(6) encourages the Government of Guatemala 
to act with due diligence in order to investigate 
promptly the killings of women and girls, prosecute 
those responsible, and eliminate the tolerance of vio-
lence against women; 
(7) supports efforts to identify perpetrators and 
unknown victims through forensic analysis, including 
DNA testing, such as the National Institute for Fo-
rensic Science in Guatemala (INACIF) and encour-
ages 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 con-
tinued harassment of these families and the human 
rights defenders with whom they work, and to ex-
press 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 
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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 ade-
quately, whether through negligence, omission, or 
abuse, has led to impunity for these crimes; 
(11) encourages the Secretary of State to sup-
port and urge the Government of Guatemala to take 
measures to ensure that the special Guatemalan po-
lice and prosecutorial units have an adequate num-
ber of appropriately trained personnel with sufficient 
resources to conduct thorough and proper investiga-
tions and prosecutions that reflect the gravity and 
magnitude of this national security crisis; 
(12) recommends that the United States Am-
bassador to Guatemala continue to meet with the 
families of the victims, women’s rights organizations, 
and Guatemalan officials responsible for inves-
tigating these crimes and preventing such future 
crimes; and 
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