Addressing the Sex and Gender-Based Violence in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador Fueling the U.S. Border Crisis

Pervasive sexual violence against women and girls in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador (including rape, domestic and sexual servitude, sexual assault, forced disappearances, human trafficking, and even murder) perpetrated by gangs, narco-traffickers, human traffickers, and a machismo culture fueled by corruption and impunity has led to some of the highest rates of violence against women and girls in the world, forcing these women and girls to flee and migrate to the United States. While there have been some efforts to provide U.S. funding to programs that combat violence against women and girls (and corruption), a combination of conditions, cuts, withholding, and reallocation of the funding has hindered impactful programming to address the root causes of the child migration crisis. This policy brief recommends that 1) the U.S., the European Union, and the United Nations work with the governments and civil society in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador to create a Commission Against Sex and Gender-Based Violence; and 2) the U.S. government enact legislation to address the root causes of violence against women and girls and provide foreign assistance to the region to address sex and gender-based violence and combat corruption.