WUNRN
Colombia
Failing to Support Displaced and Abused Women - Report
17 November 2009
Written
by: Anastasia Moloney
BOGOTA
(AlertNet) - The Colombian government is failing to provide adequate
humanitarian assistance to thousands of displaced women and girls, many of whom
are victims of sexual violence and abuse, aid agency Refugees International
said in a report.
Colombia's
constitutional court ruled last year that the government was not fulfilling its
legal obligations to provide health care, education, housing, job opportunities
and training for displaced women and their families. Despite that landmark
decision, little progress has been made, the agency found.
"The
level of government response has been so far very disappointing," said
Melanie Teff, an advocate at Refugees International, who recently made a
three-week fact-finding trip to Colombia.
"It
is time for the government of Colombia to prioritise the implementation of the
court orders," said the report, published on Monday by the
Washington-based organisation.
Women
and children bear the brunt of Colombia's displacement crisis. They account for
around 80 percent of the country's estimated 3.2 million internally displaced
people (IDPs), and nearly half of displaced households are headed by women.
But
government aid to IDPs is not targeting women, the report concluded.
"Significant
steps are still required to ensure that the humanitarian response takes the
specific needs of women into account," the report concluded.
One
in ten Colombians, around 250,000 people every year, are uprooted because of
violence from Colombia's armed conflict, according to Refugees International.
Civilians
flee their homes to escape crossfire between guerrilla groups fighting against
government troops for territorial control in some rural and jungle areas of
Colombia. The threat of armed groups seizing children for use as soldiers is
another leading cause of displacement.
SEXUAL VIOLENCE AS A TACTIC
Sexual
violence, including rape, is also forcing women and children to leave their
homes, and is being used as a strategy in Colombia's decades-long conflict.
"Armed
groups are also using sexual violence and forced recruitment as tactics in the
conflict," said the report.
"Threats
of sexual violence are a major factor leading families with adolescent girls to
flee."
In
a 2007 study across four cities conducted by the Colombian Ombudsman Office -
the national agency charged with overseeing civil and human rights - 18 percent
of IDP women cited sexual violence as a direct cause of displacement.
Colombian
women's rights groups have presented 183 cases of sexual violence against IDP
women to the country's constitutional court. As a result, the court ordered the
government to investigate the alleged cases of sexual violence.
But
one year on from the court ruling, no-one has been brought to justice, Refugees
International said.
The
number of sexual abuse victims among IDP women is also likely to be higher than
official figures show.
"Sexual
violence as a cause of displacement is under-reported, as women are ashamed to
report incidents when attempting to register as displaced," the report
said. "Survivors and witnesses have no faith that they will receive
protection."
All
armed groups in Colombia's conflict, including leftist guerrillas from the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), right-wing paramilitaries and
government forces have been known to carry out acts of sexual violence.
"Every
side of the conflict is taking part in sexual abuse. We did hear cases of rape
by government soldiers," said Teff.
Refugees
International said there was an 'urgent need' to improve protection programmes
and provide psychological support for survivors of sexual violence.
The
aid agency urged the United States, a key ally and billion-dollar donor to
Colombia, to put pressure on the Colombian government to implement the court
ruling and address impunity for violence against women.
"The
U.S. government should take the opportunity of its close relationship with its
Colombian counterpart to strongly encourage full compliance and provide help
and resources to facilitate that task," the report said.
"Implementation
of this court order would represent a major step forward in defending the
rights of displaced women," it concluded.
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