In Mexico, a grisly killing inflames debate about femicide
Mexico city: She was one more victim here in a growing wave of femicide — the killing of women because of their gender.
But the gruesome slaying of Ingrid Escamilla, 25, in the Mexican capital set off a firestorm of protest following the publication of forensic photographs of her mutilated body that were leaked to the media. In Mexico, as in other Latin American nations, feminists, human rights advocates and others have long argued that the murder of women has not been a law enforcement priority.
Of the 35,558 homicides recorded in Mexico last year, 3825 of the victims were female.
A total of 1006 killings were officially classified as femicides, based on a variety of criteria, including whether the victim’s body showed any signs of sexual violence and whether there had been a “sentimental” or “close” relationship between the victim and the suspect. The femicide total — which is incomplete, because several states still do not use the designation — marks a 145 per cent jump over the 411 cases in 2015. The increase significantly exceeds the rapid rise in the country’s overall homicide rate.
Escamilla was found dead in an apartment in the capital, apparently stabbed to death. Her body had been partially skinned and some organs removed, police said. A 46-year-old man who was reportedly her romantic partner has been arrested in connection with the case. Footage, apparently leaked by police, shows the suspect bloodied and admitting to the killing.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador told reporters he supported women’s desire to see greater justice for gender crime.
“Who killed Ingrid Escamilla?” read a headline on a column in El Universal newspaper written by Alejandro Hope, a political science professor. “A violent and machismo culture killed Ingrid, our indifference killed her, our failure to demand that things change killed her.”
In Mexico, Hope noted in the column, only 1 in 10 cases of homicides of women result in a guilty verdict.
As the controversy has grown, more details have emerged about Escamilla, whose life story — that of a well-educated young women from the provinces who comes to work in the capital — reflects that of many young residents of Mexico City. She was a native of a poor mountain town in central Puebla state who had a master’s degree in tourist business administration.
One of five daughters — including a twin sister — she was described in social media posts as a lover of animals and of Harry Potter.
In 2017, according to various media accounts, Escamilla volunteered for reconstruction work in the earthquake-battered town of Jojutla de Juárez in Morelos state, and urged acquaintances on social media to come help “rebuild Mexico.”
She had been a teenage beauty queen in her home town of Nueva Necaxa Canaditas, where she was buried this week.