Every day in 2018, 73 cases of sexual violence were reported, with an average of 64 cases involving minors, according to a report from the country’s Medical Examiner’s Office.
Although the numbers for December have not been calculated yet, the 24,532 cases reported as of November already exceeds all of 2017’s reported cases. At present, numbers show a 12.7% increase in cases of sexual violence.
Minors continue to be the most affected, and are 90% of the cases reported. The majority of cases involve adolescents, 9,785 cases, ages 12-14. There were 7,954 cases involving children from 6 to 11 years old, and 3,774 cases involving children 5 years old or younger. Of the abused minors, 74.4% are girls.
According to the medical examiner, in almost 11,000 of the cases involving minors the perpetrator is a family member. Parents, or step-fathers, are the primary aggressors, accused in over 5,000 cases. Uncles are alleged in 1,697 cases, and grandparents with 1,034 allegations.
In 5,632 cases, the aggressor was someone the victim knew. And in 1,939 cases the perpetrator was considered a friend. The assailant was unknown in 4.8% of the cases reported.
The family is one of the most dangerous places to be for girls in Colombia.
Women’s rights activist Natalia Espitia
Perhaps most infuriating is that, according to children’s rights activist Isabel Cuadros, 98% of the cases never reach a conviction.
Even though over 10,000 people currently sit in Colombian prisons convicted for sexual violence, this is a very small percentage of those accused.
