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Conviction in Bolivia Rape Case: Perpetrator Sentenced to 5 Years Imprisonment
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Tuesday, 02 September 2008

LA PAZ, BOLIVIA - The perpetrator in an IJM Bolivia case has been convicted of repeated sexual assault of a minor victim. The perpetrator, now 68 years old, began abusing the victim when she was only nine years old.

As the victim’s godfather, the perpetrator had the trust and confidence of the victim’s family, which he exploited to assault her repeatedly over the course of several years. The abuse resulted in the victim’s pregnancy at the age of 16. Once she became pregnant, she overcame her fear of her abuser to disclose his actions to her mother, who reported the case to police.

We’re trying to get people to see that they can actually achieve justice in Bolivia.
– Jaime Farrant, IJM Bolivia Director
IJM Bolivia took on the case in November 2007. Bolivian law stipulates that individuals over the age of 60 who are convicted of crimes can serve their sentences under house arrest, upon request and court approval. However, this provision designed for the protection of elderly prisoners is often misunderstood to mean that individuals over 60 simply cannot be prosecuted for crimes they commit. Confident in this misinterpretation, the perpetrator admitted to the abuse, but told police that they “could not” prosecute him because of his age.

On August 21, after several months of court hearings, the perpetrator was convicted of the abuse and sentenced to five years imprisonment. Justice seemed impossible in the case – but the sentence has demonstrated to the community that a perpetrator’s age does not mean they can act with impunity toward vulnerable victims.

The sentence has also brought great relief to the victim and her family. The victim recently graduated from high school and is caring for her child now. She has also secured a position as a seamstress and will be receiving on-going care from IJM Bolivia’s aftercare team.

Jaime Farrant, the director of IJM’s Bolivia office, notes that the significance of this conviction can best be understood in light of the fact that, according to statistics from the Bolivian judiciary, only1% of rape cases in the region result in a conviction for the perpetrators. Between 2001 and 2007, the Department of La Paz, where IJM Bolivia conducts its casework, had an average of three rape convictions a year. So far, in 2008, IJM Bolivia has already secured two convictions against perpetrators. “We’re trying to get people to see that they can actually achieve justice in Bolivia. These two cases are a start,” says Farrant.

 
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