Broken Windows: How the Impunity of the State Facilitates High Rates of Femicide in El Salvador

The exponential increase of femicides in El Salvador over the last years can most likely for a part be attributed to the impunity of the state when it comes to prosecution of perpetrators of gender-based violence (Walsh and Menjívar 587). Moreover, the machismo culture that is present in most Latin American countries, creates a backdrop for the normalization of gendered violence. Internalized misogyny that Salvadoran women presumably have adopted in a culture that continuously tells them that they are to blame for any abuse they might face, could very well be another part of the explanation of the lack of a decrease in femicide rates since 2012. In this paper the possible reasons behind the exponential growth of femicide rates in El Salvador will be explained throughout three chapters. First of all, a theoretical framework will be provided, in which several relevant concepts will be defined. Secondly, femicide in El Salvador will be contextualised by looking at both the history of...Show moreThe exponential increase of femicides in El Salvador over the last years can most likely for a part be attributed to the impunity of the state when it comes to prosecution of perpetrators of gender-based violence (Walsh and Menjívar 587). Moreover, the machismo culture that is present in most Latin American countries, creates a backdrop for the normalization of gendered violence. Internalized misogyny that Salvadoran women presumably have adopted in a culture that continuously tells them that they are to blame for any abuse they might face, could very well be another part of the explanation of the lack of a decrease in femicide rates since 2012. In this paper the possible reasons behind the exponential growth of femicide rates in El Salvador will be explained throughout three chapters. First of all, a theoretical framework will be provided, in which several relevant concepts will be defined. Secondly, femicide in El Salvador will be contextualised by looking at both the history of femicide in Latin America and that of El Salvador more specifically. Finally, the last chapter will apply a SWOT-analysis to examine the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the 2012 Special Integrated Law for a Life free From Violence against women, as to find out why the legislation has apparently failed and how it could be more successful.Show less

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Broken Windows: How the Impunity of the State Facilitates High Rates of Femicide in El Salvador