The Guidelines for Prosecutors on the Investigation and Litigation of Femicide Cases (the “Guidelines”) constitute an adaptation to the reality and legal context of Uruguay of the Latin American Model Protocol for the Investigation of Violent Deaths of Women for Gender-Related Reasons (femicide/feminicide) (UN Protocol), developed by the Regional Office for Central America of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (OHCHR) and UN Women. It also draws on international documents and institutional protocols implemented by other prosecutor’s offices across the continent. In particular, it incorporates elements from the Protocol for the Investigation and Litigation of Violent Deaths of Women (Femicide Cases) (UFEM Protocol) of the Specialized Prosecutor’s Unit on Violence Against Women of the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Argentina.
The purpose of these Guidelines is to serve as a tool for the investigation and litigation of femicide cases in Uruguay. They provide clear and practical guidance to investigate and litigate cases of violent deaths of women efficiently, with a gender perspective, and ensuring that the actions of the Office of the Attorney General (FGN or Fiscalía) are carried out in accordance with international human rights standards.
These Guidelines were developed at the initiative of the Specialized Gender Unit and the Department of International Cooperation (DCI), forming an internal working team within the Prosecutor’s Office together with the Adversarial Criminal Justice System Area (SPA) and the Victims and Witnesses Unit (UVyT). Contributions were also received from the Strategic Litigation Unit (ULE) and the project was supported by the European Union program EUROsociAL+, with contributions from expert Françoise Roth, human rights specialist Stefanía Rainaldi, and the Specialized Prosecutor’s Unit on Violence Against Women (UFEM) of Argentina’s Public Prosecutor’s Office; as well as UN Women, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and the global Spotlight Initiative.
