period. The State responded to the petitioners’ observations on March 23, 2004. The IACHR forwarded this information to the petitioners on April 14, 2004. III. POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES A. The petitioners 6. The petitioners contend that the State is, inter alia, responsible for the unlawful arrest, rape, and torture of Valentina Rosendo Cantú, and for the subsequent lack of investigation of these facts. According to the complaint, Valentina Rosendo Cantú, 17 years of age, was assaulted and raped by two members of the Mexican Army, while six other soldiers observed. 7. The petitioners allege that on February 16, 2002, at approximately 2:00 p.m., Valentina Rosendo Cantú, an indigenous person of the Tlapanec people, and resident of Barranca Bejuco, was washing clothes in a stream about 200 meters away from her home when two soldiers appeared, along with a civilian that they had tied up. Two of the soldiers came close to the alleged victim while the others surrounded her and angrily questioned her about the whereabouts of the hooded men. She answered that she did not know of any, which then prompted one of the soldiers to aim at her with his weapon and, threatening to shoot her asked her if she was from Barranca Bejuco. The alleged victim answered that she was not, that she was from Caxitepec. One of the soldiers showed her a photograph and asked her if she knew the person in it, to which she responded that she did not. 8. According to the petitioners, the soldiers continued questioning her regarding a list of names, asking her if she knew them, to which she said that she did not. The soldier that was pointing at her with his weapon then hit her with its butt in the stomach. She fell on her back on some rocks, briefly losing consciousness. When she recovered consciousness, she sat down and one of the soldiers, grabbing her by the hair violently said: “How can it be that you don’t know, aren’t you from Barranca Bejuco?” She answered again that no, that she was from Caxitepec, that she lived in Barranca Bejuco because she had just married. The two soldiers then scratched her face, took off her skirt, her petticoat and her underpants and lay her down. One of them spread her legs, lowered his trousers and his underwear and raped her for 5 to 6 minutes, and the other soldier did the same, while other six soldiers looked on. As soon as she could free herself, the alleged victim managed to stand, “practically naked and ran, managing to get past the circle of soldiers surrounding her, as they mockingly watched her.” She ran home and told her next of kin, including her husband F., about what had happened; they both then decided to report on them to the community delegate. 9. According to the petitioners, because she was ill, the alleged victim arrived at the public health clinic of the community of Caxitepec, Municipality of Acatapc, to receive care and to obtain a medical report on the rape of which she had been a victim. However, the health personnel did not take her under their care, arguing that “they did not wish for any problems with the military, and that they could not see her there anyway because they did not have the necessary equipment.”2 The petitioners contend that after gathering the money to travel, they arrived at the General Hospital, which is part of the Health Ministry of the State of Guerrero, where she was examined, and then received a report stating that she had sustained trauma to the abdomen because of the blows received. No laboratory studies were suggested, however, nor did she receive a prescription to alleviate her discomfort. In addition, the case was not reported to the Office of the Attorney General, as it should have been. The petitioners contend that the alleged victim had to pay for her own treatment for Human Papilloma Virus apparently contracted from the rape, and that her mental state brought about by the events has not yet been treated. 10. The petitioners affirm that on March 8, 2002, the alleged victim lodged a complaint against the soldiers with the Office of the Attorney General in the ordinary jurisdiction, in Ayutla de los Libres, Guerrero, for the crimes of rape, torture, unlawful detention and others to emerge from the investigation. This gave rise to Preliminary Inquiry ALLE/SC/02/62/2002. Following a 2 Petitioners’ communication dated November 16, 2003, p. 3. 2