Voces from Colombia: Women’s Rights Advocate and Sexual Violence Survivor Angela María Escobar

Oxfam America, together with the Latin America Working Group (LAWG), organized a visit to Washington, D.C. for Angela and other Colombian women’s rights activists in July 2018 to present the findings of a collaborative study on sexual violence during the Colombian armed conflict. The women also advocated for victims of sexual violence, discussed the role of women in the peace accords, and urged the United States to ensure that the new Colombian government protects and fulfills the accords in their totality.

“I was raped three times: once when I was 14, another time at age 35 by three paramilitaries, and again at 42 by a partner.” Throughout the week, as she repeatedly told her story, outlined the difficulties that victims of sexual assault face in Colombia, and expressed her concerns for the future of the peace accords, Angela’s voice never wavered. “I am a woman who overcame.”

In Colombia, “impunity is institutionalized,” said Angela. After a woman is raped, she “has to prove to officials that she is innocent.” Between 2010 and 2015, 875,437 Colombian women living in conflict affected regions were direct victims of sexual violence. But despite the enormous magnitude of sexual violence, only 20% of survivors reported their abuses to the authorities. According to Angela, the “total impunity” that remains for those who commit acts of sexual violence is a major reason for the lack of reporting. In fact, of the reported cases, 97 percent of those accused remained unpunished.

In addition to impunity, Angela explained that women refrain from speaking out because of the threats to themselves and their loved ones. “We are kept in silence for so many years. The greatest threat is that if we tell, they will kill our families or they will kill us… it is better to stay quiet and take care of our families so that nothing happens to them.”

But Colombian victims of sexual assault are silenced by more than the threat of retribution, they are also silenced by the fear of stigmatization. For Angela, “to speak is to prevent.” Consequently, “We are encouraging more women to speak out. We are raising awareness in society that we are not at fault. And above all, we are sensitizing our families, because we are very stigmatized by our families.”

“I am a woman who overcame.”

She also emphasized the positive impact of Rape and Other Violence: Get My Body Out of the War, a campaign started by organizations of women, feminists, victims and human rights defenders in 2009 to visibilize sexual violence in the armed conflict and demand justice for victims. “The campaign was something wonderful for us because it has allowed us to break the silence, to shatter the fear, to end the stigma and the shame that sexual violence has generated within us. The campaign also showed us that we are not alone.”

But despite the gains over the past few years, Angela is very concerned. “Everything that we have achieved as women’s organizations [during the peace negotiations] has been rejected.” As the new government led by Iván Duque is on the precipice of taking power, there is genuine fear amongst the victims of sexual violence about their ability to access justice moving forward.

“In the JEP [Special Jurisdiction for Peace] we have the most hope; it’s the only chance for restorative justice.” But the incoming government’s plans to modify the JEP, as well as other parts of the accords, are putting victims of the armed conflict in a more vulnerable position. If military members are tried in special courtrooms, “we [the victims] are never going to know the full truth.” This will have detrimental implications for the guarantee of non-recurrence and for the psychological wellbeing of those whose rights were violated.“What we ask, as victims, is to know the truth.”