Press Release from Oxfam:
International aid agency Oxfam today called for “zero-tolerance” toward sexual violence committed by all armed groups in Colombia. Thousands of women have been raped and sexually abused during the armed conflict, but the vast majority of perpetrators are not held to account for their crimes.
In its new report “Sexual Violence in Colombia: Instrument of War”, Oxfam says that every armed group – government security forces, paramilitary groups and guerrillas – use sexual violence to intimidate and terrorise women.
“Women are murdered, persecuted, tortured and forced to take up arms, just like any man, but we are also the victims of atrocious kinds of sexual violence stirred up by the very conflict,” said Jineth Bedoya, a Colombian journalist and victim.
Far from being sporadic, the use of this violence has become routine practice, forming a normal part of the armed conflict . The report points out, nonetheless, how the persistent hiding and denial of these crimes hinders any investigation, prosecution and punishment of those responsible. The impunity that rules in the country in face of these crimes has turned women into forgotten victims of the conflict.
“Many women refuse to formally denounce these crimes dreading retaliation, shame, and even fear for their own lives and those of their families,” added Irene Milleiro, spokeswoman for Intermón Oxfam. In addition, the lack of legal guarantees and the lack of confidence in government institutions prevent those women who want to complaint from doing so.
The small steps taken against impunity toward these crimes have been made possible thanks to pressure from women’s rights organizations, which have led in the past few years to the investigation of 183 cases of displaced women who have been victims of sexual violence. Nevertheless, that is a small number, taking into account that there are between 3 and 4 million displaced people in Colombia – half of them women –, and that 2 out of 10 displaced women have had to abandon their homes due to sexual violence.
“Unfortunately, there is a general perception that prevails in Colombia where these crimes are a second-rate violation of human rights. This is preventing the adoption of tougher measures in order to have a solid legal framework against crimes towards women,” claimed Milleiro.
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