P.O.V. - Señorita Extraviada . Update

Group of investigators stand around a crime scene

Someone is killing the young women of Juárez, Mexico, one of the world's largest border cities. Since 1993, over 270 young women have been raped and murdered in a chillingly consistent and brazen manner. Authorities ignore pleas for justice from the victims' families and the crimes go unpunished. Most disturbingly, evidence of government complicity remains uninvestigated as the killings continue to this day.

Click on the links below for recent press coverage relating to the Juárez murders and the investigation.

Since Lourdes Portillo stopped filming "Senorita Extraviada" in 2000, more women have been murdered in Juárez and the crimes are still unsolved. Most recently, in November 2001, the bodies of 8 women were found in a shallow grave outside the city. Women's groups, human rights organizations, and unions have launched a national anti-violence campaign in response to the murders involving some 300 organizations.

CNN — November 23, 2005
"Mexico quietly ends probe of killings along border" — July 25, 2006
Mexico's federal government ended their three-year investigation into the Juárez murders. The victims' families learned that the investigation was closed only when reading of it in the local newspaper.

BBC News
"No end to women murders in Mexico" — November 23, 2005
Murders in Juárez reached peak numbers since the killings started in 1983.

BBC News
"Fund Unveiled for Mexican Murders" — March 3, 2005
The Mexican government has compensated $2.7 million to victim's families, though they did not indicate who would receive the funds and how much they would receive.

News Amnesty
"Mexico: Justice fails in Ciudad Juarez" — February 28, 2005
State and federal officials have failed to help make much progress in the Juarez killings. The governor of Chihuahua has also declared that the international attention given to the murders have been harmful to the portrayal of the city.

Mother Jones Magazine
"To Work and Die in Juárez" — May/June 2002
As the investigation continues to be rife with controversy and allegations of corruption, women's groups and activists struggle to find their own justice.

Christian Science Monitor
"Border Mystery: 274 Murders in Nine Years" — May 2, 2002
An international coalition of activists, politicians, academics and law enforcement officials call upon the Juárez police to accept the help of U.S. resources, technology and experts.

Frontera NorteSur
"Ciudad Juárez: Women's Issues" — March 2002
A series of features in an issue focusing on the murders in Juárez, from an online U.S.-Mexico border news source produced by New Mexico State University.

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