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-Editorial
Congresswoman Alejandra Chedraui Peralta (Morena) proposed amending Article 19 of the Political Constitution to expand the list of crimes warranting mandatory pretrial detention and include “attempted femicide.”
The initiative, referred to the Constitutional Points Commission for review, argues that the article establishes the crimes warranting mandatory pretrial detention, meaning the deprivation of liberty without the need for a judicial resolution in specific cases due to the seriousness of the crime.
Currently, completed femicide is included in this category; however, “attempted femicide” is not explicitly considered.
It emphasizes that, given the seriousness of attempted femicide, it is necessary to update the constitutional wording to include it in the list of crimes and ensure greater protection for women victims, as well as a more effective response from the justice system.
The proposal states that this type of aggression involves acts of extreme violence that, in many cases, leave victims with severe physical, emotional, and psychological damage, and without stronger action to stop the aggressor before femicide is committed, the victims remain at constant risk of being killed.
The document notes that although cases of femicide in Mexico have decreased from 981.5 in 2021, the peak year, to 831 in 2023, “this cannot be seen as a significant achievement and highlights a deficiency in both the social and legal structure for effectively reducing and eradicating gender-based violence.”
These, it adds, are just figures representing officially recorded femicides. According to INEGI’s Statistics of Registered Deaths for 2022, the total number of homicide deaths was 23,150, of which 3,675 were women, with the highest rates among those aged 15 to 44.
Therefore, Chedraui Peralta considers incorporating attempted femicide into Article 19 of the Constitution “a fundamental step in combating gender-based violence in Mexico.” Elevating its severity to a constitutional level will enable stronger judicial action, reinforcing the protection of women and contributing to the prevention of femicides in the country.
It is essential that attempted femicide receives special treatment within the legal framework, as it should be considered a serious crime to guarantee the protection of women at risk, thereby safeguarding not only the right to life but also the right to a life free from violence and the principle of gender equality, she emphasized.
