The ‘Gender Violence and Security in the Interoceanic Industrial Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec: A Critical Examination of Policies and Practices (VDGSEGUR)’ project is supported by a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Global Fellowship grant, funded by the European Commission, which was awarded to Dr Susanne Hofmann (Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow, LACC). It involves the contribution of LACC and the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social (CIESAS - Unidad Golfo).
The research addresses the ways in which organised crime and securitised local resource conflicts impact on the insecurity and violence that women experience in the interoceanic industrial corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico. Focusing on the protection of women from the risk of becoming a victim of violent crime, the study examines the co-production of security through state, corporate and community actors.
An intersectional analysis, will allow conclusions regarding sustainable security measures and crime prevention in the Isthmus corridor, broken down according to factors of race, ethnicity, and class. The findings will generate insights into what specific measures could diminish individual vulnerability and prevent re-victimisation, as well as reveal possible gaps in victim services, and helping to improve these in the future.
VDGSEGUR’s overall objective is to examine the co-production of security in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, with a focus on measures to reduce women’s risk of exposure to violent crime.
Specific objectives:
- Scrutinise how the dynamics of resource conflict and organised crime impact on women’s (in)security;
- investigate state security interventions in Veracruz and Oaxaca, focussing on the Gender Violence Alert;
- assess the contribution of community security initiatives to the creation of effective, sustainable security mechanisms for women;
- analyse the relationships between security actors (state, corporate, community/citizen); and
- assess how law enforcement efforts, crime prevention measures and state-run victim services impact on the security perception of victim relatives.
Photo banner: A exposition on feminicide in Mexico featuring a series of labels with the names of victims. United Nations Women, Orange the World 2017, Mexico, Alfredo Geurrero.