A mother of four allegedly tortured and raped by soldiers trying to frame her for drug crimes is among millions of abuse victims hoping this week's UN Human Rights Day might bring some solace - and even long-awaited justice.
Miriam Lopez and supporters are urging Metro readers to help finally win an investigation into the gruesome attack she suffered in February 2011 - and also many more human rights crimes, especially against women and children.
Her call comes amid a 16-day campaign against unpunished attacks on women across the world.
Amnesty activists say not only Mrs Lopez’s homeland of Mexico, but also Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Syria and Sudan are failing female victims.
Next Sunday will mark the two-year anniversary of 30-year-old Mrs Lopez filing a complaint about her treatment to the Mexican Federal Attorney General’s Office.
Many more are feared to have suffered similar ordeals in a country where torture and ill-treatment allegations rose by 500 per cent between 2006 and 2012.
Amnesty's ‘Write For Rights’ campaign is part of ‘16 Days of Activism’ running from International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on November 25 to the United Nations’ Human Rights Day.
Other targeted countries include Bangladesh, where victims include activist Kalpana Chakma - abducted by security personnel in 1996 and missing ever since.
Amnesty is also highlighting DR Congo, where human rights defenders face intimidation, and Sudan, where women can be sentenced to public floggings for wearing trousers or having hair uncovered.
Mrs Lopez wants police action against her alleged attackers, both of whom she has identified - though still no one has been officially questioned.
Her nightmare began just after dropping three of her children at school on February 2, 2011, near their home in the northern city of Ensenada.
Two balaclava-clad men suddenly seized her, bundled her into a van and drove her to a military barracks in nearby Tijuana where she was held for a week.
She has described how she spent the next seven days being tortured with electric shocks and water poured over her face - and also repeatedly raped.
The soldiers detaining her wanted her to confess to trafficking drugs through a military checkpoint.
Mrs Lopez was not released from custody until September 2 that year, when her case collapsed due to a lack of evidence.
Despite filing her complaint on December 15, 2011, and submitting to medical tests which showed evidence of torture and sexual assault, she has heard nothing more.
She said: ‘I try to live normally but I’m always scared - for me, for my family - that something is going to happen to them.’
'Write For Rights' is urging people to pen letters not only to comfort abuse victims but also to authorities to demand action.
Mrs Lopez told sympathisers: 'It is a source of strength to receive so many messages of support.
'I truly thank all of you who are supporting my cause so much.
'I know each signature, the campaign and your support will help achieve what I want so much - justice.'
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