PETER GABRIEL - GABRIEL URGES MEXICAN LEADER TO STOP 'FEMINICIDE'

GABRIEL URGES MEXICAN LEADER TO STOP 'FEMINICIDE'

Rocker PETER GABRIEL urged Mexican leader FELIPE CALDERON to step up efforts to end violence against women in his country during a weekend meeting with the President.
Gabriel, who is in Mexico as part of a South American tour, met with President Calderon on Friday (27Mar09) on behalf of human rights group Witness, which the rock star founded in 1992.
The long-time Amnesty International activist expressed his concern about the "feminicide" currently sweeping through Ciudad Juarez and Chihuahua in Mexico.
He was joined by actor Diego Luna, Mexican rocker Saul Hernandez and Patricia Cervantes, the mother of Neyra Cervantes - whose 2003 murder was the subject of a Witness film.
According to the human rights group, more than 470 women have been violently killed in Ciudad Juarez and Chihuahua in the past 15 years. There are no definitive explanations for the killings.
A spokeswoman for Witness says, "We are thrilled by President Calderon's response to our meeting. His commitment to review cases and issues related to feminicide in Ciudad Juarez and Chihuahua means renewed hope for the families of hundreds of murdered women."