Paraguay has officially enacted the MAFE Law, introducing an immediate and compulsory law system. The law is for the search and location of missing persons across the country, with particular emphasis on the protection of children, girls, and adolescents.
The new law is named in memory of María Fernanda Benítez. She was a seventeen-year-old from Coronel Oviedo, about 130 kilometres from Asunción, who was brutally murdered in May 2025. Her case not only involved procedural delays and a lack of inter-agency coordination, but also forced María Fernanda’s father to act as a private investigator in his own daughter’s disappearance.
The new legislation promulgated by President Santiago Peña creates the National Register of Missing Persons. Also activates the MAFE Alert from the very moment a disappearance is reported. The law abolishes any waiting period for filing a complaint, acknowledging that the first minutes and hours are decisive for increasing the chances of a successful recovery.
Legal framework and mandatory state action
The new regulation grants full legal status to a mechanism that previously operated under an executive decree. This way, strengthening its institutional authority and operational scope. From its entry into force, all state institutions are required to respond in an immediate, coordinated, and obligatory manner when a disappearance is reported.
This legal backing seeks to prevent fragmented responses. To ensure that every case triggers a standardised chain of action across public agencies, without discretion or delay.
Standardised protocols and centralised information
Alongside the law, the Government approved the MAFE Alert Activation Protocol, which functions as a unified operational guide. The protocol establishes clearly defined responsibilities for each institution involved. Also introduces a single reporting form available at police stations nationwide.
All case information is centralised within the National Police Department for the Search and Location of Missing Persons, allowing for continuous monitoring, traceability of actions, and coordinated follow-up from the first report.
Technology as a strategic ally
Technology constitutes a central pillar of the MAFE system. The legislation incorporates the use of digital platforms to enable rapid dissemination of alerts through official channels and communication networks.
In parallel, the government has initiated cooperation with telecommunications companies and social media platforms to allow alerts to be delivered directly to mobile phones. Therefore, significantly expanding their reach and accelerating public awareness.
The law also establishes the National Register of Missing Persons, designed to compile reliable and up-to-date information at a national level. The register supports systematic data organisation, improved planning and analysis, and documented follow-up of each case, while ensuring confidentiality and personal data protection.
This tool aims to strengthen both immediate response and long-term institutional learning in cases involving missing adults and, prioritised above all, children and adolescents.
A response shaped by public demand
The enactment of the MAFE Law follows strong public demand after cases that exposed weaknesses in previous search procedures and delays in official intervention. Authorities underline that the new framework represents a shift towards a more humane, efficient, and preventive model, in which the government and society act together from the first moment.
With the law and its protocol now fully operational, Paraguay affirms that it has the legal, technical, and human capacity to respond promptly to disappearances, reinforcing the principle that every minute matters.
So that the story of María Fernanda may never be repeated, the MAFE Law seeks to transform a tragedy into a turning point, reshaping how Paraguay responds to disappearances and ensuring that institutional silence is never again measured in lost time.
