The United States is facing international scrutiny for its apparent failure to prosecute criminals who enter indigenous territories to prey on Native women and girls.
Between 60 and 80 percent of violent victimisation of Native American women is perpetrated by non-Natives, says a U.N. expert on legal matters related to women’s rights violations worldwide.
Rashida Manjoo, the U.N. special rapporteur on violence against women, notes that in the U.S., indigenous women are much more vulnerable to abuses than any other ethnic group in the country.
Manjoo, who met a number of officials and rights activists in her investigation of the situation of women in the United States, cited data showing that one in three Native women is raped during her lifetime.
In most cases, the rapists go free because the tribal elders have limited power to prosecute those who commit crimes on their territory. Native people say it is very hard for them to get help from the U.S. authorities. Read more