20 Isabel Véliz Franco was in peril from the moment she was reported missing, its duty was to take immediate steps to search for her. 89. As explained in the section on established facts, in view of the situation in Guatemala, by 2001 the State was well aware of the escalation in violence against girls and women in that country and, therefore, that the alleged victim was facing the very real and imminent danger of possible sexual assault or possibly murder. . 90. The Commission would point out that in the period between 2000 and 2005 the number of violent deaths reported within the general population rose; however, the increase was considerably more in the case of women. The figures supplied by the National Civil Police showed that whereas the 101 incidence of violent death among men was 36%, it rose to 56.8% among women. 91. The IACHR Rapporteur also wrote that while the State has taken measures to address 102 violence against women, they are still not sufficient to deal with this problem. In its report titled Access to Justice for Women Victims of Violence in the Americas, the IACHR reported that research in Guatemala found that only 0.33% of the complaints of sexual crimes actually went to trial, which is 103 extremely low. As for the investigation of the cases, the IACHR observed that the authorities in charge of investigations into incidents of violence against women were neither competent nor impartial, which considerably foreshortened any possibility that these cases would ever be prosecuted and the guilty 104 parties punished. For his part, Guatemala’s Human Rights Ombudsperson made reference to the failure to apply due diligence, as there are no “policies to prevent, investigate, punish or do justice in the 105 face of the disturbing increase in femicide.” 92. Given this situation, the IACHR concludes that the Guatemalan State has failed to show that reasonable measures were taken to find the girl María Isabel Véliz Franco, who was reported missing. This failure to comply with the duty to ensure is particularly serious because of the atmosphere of violence against women and girls –of which the State was well aware- and which made them particularly vulnerable, which in the case of a minor automatically necessitated special measures of protection, pursuant to Article 19 of the American Convention (which will be discussed at greater later in this report), and the enhanced obligations that the Convention of Belém do Pará imposes upon the State in cases of violence against women. 93. The IACHR also finds that the State did not show that it adopted the norms or implemented the measures required under the Convention of Belém do Pará, to enable the authorities to offer an immediate and effective response to complaints of missing persons and properly prevent 106 violence against women at the time of these events. 101 International Federation of Human Rights (Federación Internacional de Derechos Humanos, FIDH), International Investigative Mission Report: Femicide in Mexico and Guatemala (Informe: Misión Internacional de Investigación: El Femicidio en México y Guatemala), no. 446/3 April 2006, p. 26. As of 2005, the number of murders of women was up 63.41% over the 2002 figures, according to the figures supplied by Guatemala’s Ombudsperson for Human Rights. See, Ombudsperson for Human Rights, Guatemala, C.A., Power Point presentation, Guatemala, March 2006, available [in Spanish] online at: http://www.pdh.org.gt/files/inf_especiales/presentacion_muertemujeres03-05.pdf 102 IACHR, IACHR, Press Release No. 20/04, The IACHR Special Rapporteur Evaluates the Effectiveness of the Right of Women in Guatemala to Live Free from Violence and Discrimination, Washington, D.C., September 18, 2004, available at http://www.cidh.oas.org/Comunicados/English/2004/20.04.htm 103 IACHR, Access to Justice for Women Victims of Violence in the Americas, OEA/Ser. L/V/II. doc.68, January 20, 2007, paragraph 18. 104 IACHR, Access to Justice for Women Victims of Violence in the Americas, OEA/Ser. L/V/II. doc.68, January 20, 2007, paragraph 130. 105 Guatemala’s Human Rights Ombudsperson, Compendium “Muertes Violentas de Mujeres”, 2003 a 2005 [Violent Deaths among Women, 2003 to 2005], p. 92. Available [in Spanish] at http://www.pdh.org.gt/files/inf_especiales/muerte_mujeres03-05.pdf 106 See, in general, I/A Court H.R. Case of González et al. (“Cotton Field”) v. Mexico. Preliminary Objection, Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of November 16, 2009. Series C No. 205, paragraph 285.