Mexico's invisible women Less than a week ago, six Spanish
tourists were allegedly raped in the holiday resort city of
Acapulco in southern Mexico. The attack quickly made
international headlines, and although local authorities
initially appeared keen to downplay the story, spiraling public
outrage and pressure from the Spanish authorities prompted a vow
for a full investigation. Sadly, those of us who follow events
in this part the world were far from surprised by news of this
truly dreadful crime -- after all, thousands of women and girls
in Mexico suffer sexual violence every year. Indeed, according
to information Amnesty International presented to the U.N.
Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in
2012, more than 14,000 women are victims of rape each year. The
figure, based on data collected in 2009, also shows there were
only 2,795 convictions that year. National studies, meanwhile,
indicate that just a fifth of women report rape due to distrust
in the justice system and fear, meani