In its 2023 quarterly report, the Venezuelan Violence Observatory (OVV) in Monagas State warned that according to a study carried out in the first four months of this year, children and adolescents are no being protected.
Correspondent lapatilla.com
Although the NGO pointed out that cases of violence against minors have decreased compared to the same period last year, so far in 2023 the cases have leveled off by gender, that is, almost the same number in boys as in girls.
The coordinator of the OVV in the entity, María Palomo, who is also a professor at the Maturín Pedagogical Institute, reported that this study was based on media sources, where data on violence in children and adolescents from 0 to 17 years of age were analyzed.
She also highlighted that in the first four months of the year intentional homicide has predominated with 27%, robberies 24% and attempted intentional homicide 18%.
“We have noticed that in this period the attacks against girls are leveling up, since previously the majority of the cases were in boys. Now we see that in the case of homicides and attempted homicides, 49% are women and 51% men. The situational context of this type of crime occurred 50% with organized crime (involvement),” explained Palomo.
In relation to cases of sexual violence, the representative of the NGO indicated that this trend seems to be repeating itself, since it yields figures similar to those of the same period in 2022. She specifies that the ages of the victims of sexual violence range from 8 to 18 years.
In this first four-month period, the OVV records 15 children and adolescents sexually assaulted in nine events, most of the cases being girls between 12 and 16 years of age, a crime that is mostly committed at home, that is, by a family member, stepfather, neighbor or acquaintance.
Furthermore, the Venezuelan Violence Observatory highlights the need to implement programs that allow parents and representatives to be guided on child protection systems.
Similarly, it calls for developing educational programs for children and adolescents in relation to their rights and powers of protection and self-protection. She concludes that the child should be educated about her own ability to protect herself.