A 16-year-old girl has been bashed and burnt to death in a public lynching in Guatemala that was captured on video.

The girl was reportedly accused of being part of a group that killed a taxi driver. The film shows her fate at the hands of a large mob in a village in Rio Bravo province. It also reveals the brutality of the lynchings that are routine in the poor, central American country - and throughout the region.

Fairfax Media has chosen not to show the video, but its contents are described below.

At the start of the video, which has been circulated on YouTube, the girl is seen crouched on the ground having sustained severe facial wounds. After standing up in a disoriented manner, she is grabbed by a woman and then attacked by the mob.

The girl is pushed to the ground and then set alight. She writhes on the concrete as the flames grow, eventually getting back on her feet but collapsing to the ground a few second later.

At one point, while she lies still moving her hands and feet, a man walks past and pours a bottle of liquid over her, fanning the flames and creating a circle of fire that repels the onlookers. They shift backwards but continue to watch on as she burns and dies.

Bearing witness to the murder is a crowd that appears to number in excess of 100, with more likely to be watching from beyond the camera's sight.

Some stand with hands on their hips, others have their own phones out to record the lynching. Women and children populate the diverse audience.