The Attorney General’s Office of the State of Oaxaca (FGEO) brought a woman to trial for trying to force a 13-year-old girl into a forced marriage on more than one occasion in the Mazatlán Villa de Flores community in that region.
The woman, identified by the initials E. M. R., is accused of the crime of attempted human trafficking in the form of forced or aggravated servile marriage.
The events occurred on June 8, 2024, the most recent date being that the woman – in the company of another – tried to force the 13-year-old girl, whose identity is reserved, to be handed over to various adults to enter into a relationship.
The above was repeated on more than one occasion, so it was not until that date that a third person notified the local authorities, so they immediately mobilized to rescue the teenager and provide her with protective measures.
Upon learning of the case through the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Attention to High Impact Crimes, the State Attorney General’s Office began the corresponding investigations, which resulted in the arrest warrant against the accused.
The release of evidence provided by the state prosecutor’s office allowed the Judge to issue the order to link the woman to trial for the crime of attempted human trafficking in the form of forced or aggravated servile marriage.
As a precautionary measure, the accused will remain in justified preventive detention, and was given a period of 5 months to close the complementary investigation.
“The Oaxaca Prosecutor’s Office reaffirms its commitment to provide immediate results and to eradicate impunity in criminal acts that violate or threaten the integrity of victims, mainly when it comes to girls, boys and adolescents,” it detailed in a statement.
Approximately 1 in 5 girls are married today. It should be noted that since 2016 the Civil Code for the state of Oaxaca prohibits marital unions between minors, however, the cultural practice of carrying out informal unions of children and adolescents still persists.
In addition, Article 45 of the General Law on the Rights of Girls, Boys and Adolescents establishes that the minimum age for marriage is 18 years without exception.
The states with the highest absolute number of indigenous women married or in union before the age of 18 are Chiapas, Oaxaca and Guerrero, according to a 2023 report by the Government of Mexico.
Source: infobae
