A lacerating issue of national priority

Cases of sexual violence are increasing and multiplying in Bolivia. These lacerating events take place daily throughout the national territory and only when a story is highlighted by the press, the national authorities come to the fore to condemn the violations promising what they do not do.
Creepy facts were revealed a few days ago revealing an alarming decomposition with institutional complicity that does not act on time and then tears its hair.
The story of the Salazar Téllez brothers, in Yapacaní, shows a chilling scenario. A family of seven brothers where five men had become the terror of the town intimidating and threatening rape victims and the neighborhood itself. Reported for drug trafficking, aggravated robbery and multiple rapes, the brothers dominated the authorities who ignored the complaints. One of the sons is imprisoned in Chile for drug trafficking, another in the Chonchocoro prison for rape of minors. A third, who died in Palmasola prison accused of raping a minor, a fourth brother also imprisoned after a shootout with uniformed men on charges of attempted murder and a fifth brother held in Cenvicruz for rape of a minor . Unfortunately, this 11-year-old boy died yesterday after suffering an ordeal for long months of subjugation that caused the spread of a terminal sexually transmitted disease. The first reports of rape of the deceased minor date back to 2020, however, the authorities were conspicuous by his absence, deepening the drama with fatal consequences. The neighbors ask for life imprisonment or chemical castration for rapists, desperate measures in the face of a desperate situation.
Faced with situations as extreme as rape, the majority do not dare to report for various reasons: fear, threats or because they disbelieve in the effectiveness and action of justice.
The high social cost of violations places Bolivia as one of the countries that least respects human rights and especially that of minors. Taking into account labor exploitation in childhood, poverty, lack of access to basic services, such as health and education, and other deficiencies they suffer, we could say that the future is mortgaged by a bleak and irritating present.
This sector, in addition to being the most vulnerable, should be protected, cared for, strengthened and attended to from all aspects, however, it is the one that is punished the most.
In 2020, 1,308 child rapes were recorded throughout the country. Compared to 850 cases reported in 2018 and 923 in 2019, which shows that cases are doubling in the short term.
The second most reported crime in 2021 was sexual abuse with 2,638 cases, rape with 2,249, followed by rape of children and adolescents with 2,078 cases, according to the State Attorney General’s Office.
This year, according to the Prosecutor’s Office, complaints of sexual violence increased and of the 4,326 registered, 1,100 are violations of children and adolescents.
The lack of credibility in justice and the permissiveness of the processes obscured by “negotiated” make the issue a priority on the national agenda.
An issue that should be in the emergency room to be resolved or at least dealt with, from education, regulations and permanent controls in the face of the slightest symptom of this scourge that hurts us all and in turn commits us to put an end to it through a long process, tedious, but constructive.

Cases of sexual violence are increasing and multiplying in Bolivia. These lacerating events take place daily throughout the national territory and only when a story is highlighted by the press, the national authorities come to the fore to condemn the violations promising what they do not do.
Creepy facts were revealed a few days ago revealing an alarming decomposition with institutional complicity that does not act on time and then tears its hair.
The story of the Salazar Téllez brothers, in Yapacaní, shows a chilling scenario. A family of seven brothers where five men had become the terror of the town intimidating and threatening rape victims and the neighborhood itself. Reported for drug trafficking, aggravated robbery and multiple rapes, the brothers dominated the authorities who ignored the complaints. One of the sons is imprisoned in Chile for drug trafficking, another in the Chonchocoro prison for rape of minors. A third, who died in Palmasola prison accused of raping a minor, a fourth brother also imprisoned after a shootout with uniformed men on charges of attempted murder and a fifth brother held in Cenvicruz for rape of a minor . Unfortunately, this 11-year-old boy died yesterday after suffering an ordeal for long months of subjugation that caused the spread of a terminal sexually transmitted disease. The first reports of rape of the deceased minor date back to 2020, however, the authorities were conspicuous by his absence, deepening the drama with fatal consequences. The neighbors ask for life imprisonment or chemical castration for rapists, desperate measures in the face of a desperate situation.
Faced with situations as extreme as rape, the majority do not dare to report for various reasons: fear, threats or because they disbelieve in the effectiveness and action of justice.
The high social cost of violations places Bolivia as one of the countries that least respects human rights and especially that of minors. Taking into account labor exploitation in childhood, poverty, lack of access to basic services, such as health and education, and other deficiencies they suffer, we could say that the future is mortgaged by a bleak and irritating present.
This sector, in addition to being the most vulnerable, should be protected, cared for, strengthened and attended to from all aspects, however, it is the one that is punished the most.
In 2020, 1,308 child rapes were recorded throughout the country. Compared to 850 cases reported in 2018 and 923 in 2019, which shows that cases are doubling in the short term.
The second most reported crime in 2021 was sexual abuse with 2,638 cases, rape with 2,249, followed by rape of children and adolescents with 2,078 cases, according to the State Attorney General’s Office.
This year, according to the Prosecutor’s Office, complaints of sexual violence increased and of the 4,326 registered, 1,100 are violations of children and adolescents.
The lack of credibility in justice and the permissiveness of the processes obscured by “negotiated” make the issue a priority on the national agenda.
An issue that should be in the emergency room to be resolved or at least dealt with, from education, regulations and permanent controls in the face of the slightest symptom of this scourge that hurts us all and in turn commits us to put an end to it through a long process, tedious, but constructive.

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