Colombia: United against violence against girls and women
Historical injustices, normalized sexism and machismo, coupled with the consequences of armed conflict and displacement: Sexualized and gender-based violence is a particularly deep-seated problem in Colombia. An alliance of organizations helps girls and young women defend themselves against it.
There are the authorities who look the other way. There are victims who are blamed. And there are perpetrators who go unpunished. Normalized violence against children—especially girls—and against women is a major problem in many countries around the world. In Colombia, however, this problem is exacerbated by structural poverty and lack of education, by the aftereffects of years of armed conflict and displacement, by a lack of protective structures and legal aid, and by deeply entrenched sexism and machismo in large segments of society.
Three Terre des Hommespartner organizations are working together to combat this: the girls' rights organization Amiga Juven in Medellín, the human rights association Antorchas in the Bolívar region, and the Three Voices for Peace, which in turn unites a network of more than 25 organizations throughout Colombia, including many children's and youth alliances. Their shared goal: to end sexualized and gender-based violence and to ensure equality for girls and women.
"All the girls want there to be no more violence... We want freedom."
How the project works
Project duration: December 1, 2022 to December 31, 2025
Target group reached: 720 girls and young women, 105 boys and young men
Micro-level:
Positive change at the individual level
- Around 150 girls and young women affected by gender-based violence in Bolívar and 200 in Medellín were cared for by trained staff to help them process the sexualized violence they had experienced.
- Two further education centers have been established, which will now reach 60 girls, young women and young men annually.
Meso-level:
Strengthened capacities and structures in project communities
- Through the platform "3 Voices for Peace," girls have joined forces in an alliance. Around 100 girls and young women have joined, and they are now campaigning against violence and for gender equality in their neighborhoods and communities.
Macro-level
changes in the framework conditions; politics and social structures
- Political decision-makers report having a significantly better understanding of gender-based violence and its consequences.
(Among other things, a report on the consequences of violence was compiled, which meticulously documents 29 cases of sexualized violence.) - A reporting and monitoring center for sexualized violence has been established.
"The children who come to us have changed their attitudes. And what they previously considered normal – namely machismo and violence against women – they no longer find normal."