The Bolivian Ombudsman’s Office called on Friday to remain on “national alert” in view of the “marked increase” in cases of sexual violence against children and adolescents in the last year.
The entity promoted walks on this day in cities such as La Paz and Cochabamba, and also issued a statement for the “National Day of Solidarity with the victims of sexual aggression and against sexual violence against children and adolescents”.
“The data on sexual violence against children and adolescents issued in the last year summon the country to remain in a national alert due to its marked increase,” the institution indicated.
With information from the Public Prosecutor’s Office, he also mentioned that between January 1 and June 24 of this year, 24,126 cases of gender violence were registered, compared to the 23,548 reported in the same period of 2023.
The most reported crimes are sexual abuse (1,725), rape (1,466), rape of minors (1,274) and statutory rape (861), he said.
“Comparing the 2023 management with the current one, there is an increase of 10.56% in rape, 6.97% in rape of a child or adolescent, 2.26% in rape and 1.95% in sexual abuse,” he said.
According to the Ombudsman’s Office, this “worrying context calls on the State at different levels to strengthen public policies” for the prevention of these crimes and to adopt more effective measures with a focus on children’s rights.
Among the measures suggested by the institution is the implementation of a comprehensive program for the prevention of sexual violence against minors and the “elimination of the culture of silence and any form of tolerance” towards this crime.
The Ombudsman’s Office advocated for more public resources to be guaranteed to this area, in addition to the specialization of justice and protection system operators to strengthen the fight against sexual violence.
It also urged the Plurinational System for the Comprehensive Protection of Children and Adolescents, led by the Ministry of Justice, to take “comprehensive, holistic and systemic measures that consider the causes and interconnections of sexual violence” that affect the rights of minors.
In La Paz, dozens of people, including police from the Special Force for the Fight against Violence (Felcv) and officials from the Ombudsman’s Office, carried out a walk from the offices of the institution in the San Pedro neighborhood to the surroundings of the Hernando Siles stadium.
The demonstrators displayed banners with messages expressing “solidarity with the victims” or “no wives, no concubines, girls are girls”.