Our Work News From The Field Guatemala: 12 Year Sentence for Perpetrator in Sexual Violence Case | Guatemala: 12 Year Sentence for Perpetrator in Sexual Violence Case | |
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When IJM began operations in Guatemala in 2005, the staff were well-advised of the huge challenges they would face. Though the Guatemalan government has taken many positive steps to create a justice system based on the rule of law, this system has been slow to respond to the needs of the children who rely on it for protection from sexual violence. Before the IJM office opened, other experts in the field warned that fighting for justice in Guatemala would be an uphill battle – that victories would be rare and hard-fought.   Top: Using a kitchen chair as a makeshift stage, Kiara performs a well rehearsed selection of songs for IJM staff visiting her home. But just as striking as the numbers that represent them is what these victories look like in the lives of the office’s clients. Over a period of seven months beginning when she was only 4 years old, Kiara* endured constant sexual abuse by her mother’s boyfriend. Now almost 8, she lives with her loving grandparents in their Guatemala City home. Even at her young age, she understands that justice has been done in her case, and the comfort this brings her is obvious. She excels in school, where her favorite classes are gym and art. Her goal is to someday become a medical doctor so she can “help others and cure sickness.” She is vibrant, talkative and a born performer: When IJM staff recently visited her home, she gave the assembled crowd a concert, singing nine songs while standing atop a kitchen chair she had dragged to the front of the room to serve as a makeshift stage. Kiara’s parents divorced when she was very young. At 4 years old, she lived with her mother and her mother’s live-in boyfriend, Marco. Both Marco and Kiara’s mother worked at maquilas in the city – Kiara’s mother on the night shift and Marco on the day shift. This meant that Kiara and her younger brother spent most nights home alone with Marco – an arrangement that may have seemed ideal to their mother, as it meant the children were supervised in the sometimes dangerous city. But Marco exploited the family’s trust and Kiara’s vulnerability to begin violently sexually abusing her while her mother was at work. Kiara was terrified by Marco’s repeated threats to kill both her and her mother if she spoke up about the abuse, so she remained silent. The abuse continued for seven months, at which point Kiara’s mother, still unaware of the violence her daughter was facing, sent the children to live with their grandparents. After several months at her grandparents’ home, Kiara broke down and told her grandmother about the abuse she had endured. Her grandmother attempted to file a criminal complaint, but no movement was made on it – it seemed that there were no consequences for the abuser. Frustrated at the lack of action against the perpetrator, Kiara’s grandmother happened to hear a radio feature about IJM’s work. She called the station for help, and they referred her to the IJM office, which took on the Kiara’s case. An IJM investigator was able to gather enough evidence against the accused that local authorities ordered an arrest warrant. With additional investigative follow up by IJM staff, Marco was arrested by the police and charged in Kiara’s abuse. The legal team began work for the trial, which posed many challenges. Because several months elapsed between the abuse and the point at which Kiara reported the crime, the staff would not be able to present the specific types of forensic evidence Guatemalan courts typically look for. Additionally, Kiara’s mother unexpectedly provided inconsistent testimony during the trial, claiming that Kiara never lived in the home she had shared with her boyfriend. However, the IJM team was able to persuasively prove that the abuse had occurred through the testimony of multiple witnesses, including Kiara herself, a psychologist and the family’s former landlord, who confirmed that Kiara did live in a house with her mother and Marcos. After providing inconsistent – and thus incriminating – evidence himself, Marco was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his violent and repeated sexual abuse against Kiara. Kiara was clearly relieved to know that Marco would not be able to hurt her any more. IJM Guatemala has provided for Kiara’s medical expenses and ensured that she receives ongoing therapy to deal with the trauma she underwent. Living in a secure and loving home, surrounded by family who support her, Kiara is healing. Energized by this and other successes, the IJM Guatemala team is committed to continue fighting for justice in their country. |
