MEXICO CITY, June 27 (UPI) -- Mexico's presidential candidates should pledge to prevent and punish the mutilation and killing of women in Mexico, human rights groups said Tuesday.
"Women are still being abducted, tortured and killed in Mexico despite some government efforts to investigate these brutal murders," said Jose Miguel Vivanco, director of the Americas division at Human Rights Watch.
"Before going to the polls, the Mexican people should know which, if any, of the presidential candidates will commit to do something to stop these horrendous crimes."
Over the past 13 years, more than 400 women have been killed or "disappeared" in Ciudad Juarez. In a number of these cases, the women had been mutilated or severely beaten before they were killed, Human Rights Watch said in a statement.
Mexicans will head to the polls Sunday to choose a next president. Leading the race are former Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Felipe Calderon.
