Many of the cases of child marriages in Peru, which have been banned since November 2023, were carried out to cover up rapes of minors and for economic reasons, which exposes adolescents to vulnerable situations, according to CHS Alternativo.
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A study carried out in the regions of Madre de Dios, Cuzco and Loreto, located in the north and south of the country, revealed that 28.7% of adolescent girls and 40% of parents surveyed said that Families “fix things financially” to avoid reporting acts of sexual violence against minors.
Also, 35% of young people and 68.3% of parents acknowledged that The “girls” of their community join with adult couples for the financial support they give to the family.
According to the National Registry of Identification and Civil Status (Reniec), 4,356 marriages between adults and minors were recorded between 2012 and 2022, before it was banned.
“Research shows an alarming reality: girls and adolescents are joining forces with adults to cover up cases of sexual violence, but they are also being harassed and abused by their own families,” said CHS Alternativo Executive Director Ricardo Valdés.
In addition, the CHS study reflects the abuse suffered by girls, boys and adolescents in their own homes, 37% of the young women surveyed acknowledged that sexual harassment and abuse also occurs in the family environment by siblings, cousins or other relatives, with greater preponderance in the Andean department of Cuzco (72.2%).
Meanwhile, 33.3% said that a family member or friend touched and abused them and threatened them not to tell their parents.
According to the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations, in 2023, 21,929 cases of sexual violence against girls, boys and adolescents were reported, of which 92% of the victims were women, which means that every day 50 girls and adolescents were abused in the country.
And the data from the National Penitentiary Institute (INPE) corroborates this reality, because, As of April 2024, there were more than 11,500 child rapists imprisoned in Peruvian prisons for a crime that is the second most common in the country.
Valdés emphasized that Peruvian girls and adolescents and also Migrants are victims of other serious crimes, such as human trafficking, and currentlyThey make up almost 50% of victims of sexual exploitation in Peru.
In response to this, CHS Alternativo has launched the campaign “Let prevention be a trend, let’s protect ourselves from violence and human trafficking”, which places special emphasis on the young population and women and includes messages of self-care and prevention to avoid possible situations of violence or recruitment for the purposes of human trafficking or other forms of exploitation.
