Cali‘s Human Rights Agency released a report on Wednesday stating that Cali has the highest rate of femicide in Colombia.
According to the report, the rate of femicide was the highest in Cali, southwest Colombia with 144 homicides during 2013. This statistic is substantially higher than other major Colombian states, with Antioquia reporting 68 and Bogota 56.
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As International Women’s Day approaches, the Human Rights Division of the Cali state office is working in conjunction with Icesi University to organize events which will raise awareness of femicide and domestic violence. In additon the Human Rights Division is striving to make statistics more accessible.
“The barriers to procedural, administrative, social, economic and cultural development in the administration of justice, are obstacles that prevent the guarantee of the fundamental rights of battered women,” stated Paula Arbelaez, Director of Human Rights for Cali.
According to statistics reported by the Ministry of Municipal Health and Integrated System for Public Health Surveillance (SIVIGILA), during the first quarter of 2013 1,165 cases of violence were reported, of which 947 were cases of violence against women.
Of the 947 cases against women, 349 of the victims were between the ages of 20 and 39 years (36.9 %), 286 cases against young people between the ages of 10 and 19 (30, 2 %), 142 cases against women over 40 (17.9 %) and 71 cases against children aged from 0 to 9 (14.9%).
The cases reported to the Integrated Unit for the Care of Victims of Sexual Abuse – (CAIVAS) of the Office of Cali, between January and August 2013 showed 800 cases of sexual offenses, of which 705 cases (88.13 %) were committed against women, while 95 cases (11.87%) were against men. Six hundred and eighty five of these cases were committed against minors.
These statistics report that the highest rates of assaults and violence against women occur in the home. Of the 5,433 reported cases of domestic violence, 84.24 % directly affected women.
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The Human Rights Agency report affirms that there is no way to monitor domestic violence and currently almost no measures are in place to prevent perpetrators from re-offending. Furthermore, there is strong social stigmatization within communities against women who report such crimes
However the Human Rights Commission on Cali has called on the attorney general to not only increase the number of staff but to improve their training. They have asked that equipment and tests, which check for instances of abuse, are improved with more steadfast protocols introduced to improve the monitoring and treatment of victims.
In November 2013, prestigious US publication, Business Insider, issued a list of the 50 most violent cities in the world. Cali ranked as the most dangerous city in Colombia, with an average of 79 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.
Sources
- “El 95% de los procesos por violencia intrafamiliar y sexual denunciados en el 2013 están archivados” (Cali Human Rights Agency)
- Cali revela sus cifras sobre feminicidio (Semana)