BRAZIL
Sex abuse: Brazil needs change in attitude
Along the Brazilian highways young people are
being sexually exploited. Between January and March, 33.4 percent of
all the incidents with children reported by Brazil's Highway Police
involved sex. One big problem is that Brazilians do not regard
certain sexual crimes as illegal, immoral, or criminal.
“Youth struggle — for an end to impunity” will be the
theme of this year's commemoration of the National Day to Combat the
Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children and Adolescents. The coordinator of the National Committee to Confront
Violence against Children and Adolescents, Neide Castanha, considers it
possible to eliminate sexual exploitation. But for this to occur, she
says, it is necessary to overcome not only impunity but also social
inequality and exclusion. “It is of no avail to call a halt to impunity and
continue to produce and reproduce boys and girls in conditions
vulnerable to acceptance of the sex trade, that is, to offer their
bodies as a condition of their survival,” she affirmed.
Brazil's National Congress has just received the file
“Araceli Never Again — 30 Years of Impunity in Brazil," containing cases
of sexual violence against children and adolescents that have gone
unpunished since 1973. The publication was produced, with the
Committee's support, by the National Association of Child and Adolescent
Protection Centers (Anced). According to the president of the Association, Renato
Roseno, it is not a study but, rather, a warning about the existence of
impunity, with suggestions on how to combat this type of crime.
“Impunity is the rule, not the exception,” he asserted. The title of the file is a reference to an 8-year old
girl, Araceli Santos, who was a kidnap, rape, and murder victim 31 years
ago, in Vitória, Espírito Santo state. In 2000, on May 18, the anniversary of her death, the
National Day to Combat the Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children and
Adolescents was established by law.
Qualification
One of the Association's suggestions is to update the legislation
dealing with sexual crimes. The legislation dates back to the 1930's.
“Sexual crimes are currently grouped together as crimes against public
morals. This is absurd, because they are crimes against human dignity,” Roseno emphasized. He also suggests that the police and the judicial
system be trained to handle crimes that involve sexual violence. “If a
person is not well received, he or she will be victimized again,” he
said. He goes so far as to propose the creation of special courts to
treat cases of sexual exploitation and abuse of children and
adolescents.
Sexual violence against children and adolescents can
take various forms. The most common are sexual abuse within the family
itself and sexual exploitation for commercial purposes, such as
prostitution, pornography, and trafficking. When sexual violence against children and adolescents
is suspected, it can be reported to police stations, Tutelary Councils,
or Courts for Children and Youth. The Tutelary Councils visit the
families, notify them, and analyze the background of each case. If the accusation is confirmed, the Council passes it
along to the Public Prosecutor's Office. The Courts for Children and
Youth can receive denunciations in municipalities that don't have
Tutelary Councils.
Highway child sex
Along the Brazilian highways, between one city and
another, young people are sexually exploited. A study showed that
between January and March, 2004, 33.4 percent of all the incidents
reported by the Federal Highway Police (PRF) involving children and
adolescents on the highways had sexual connotations.
The study, which was done by PRF inspector Junie
Penna, points out that one of the big difficulties in combating sexual
violence is the acquiescence of society, which does not regard certain
behaviors as illegal, immoral, or criminal.
“We are unable to act, unless organized civil society
gets effectively involved, unless society raises demands for government
policies, and, clearly, to do this, it must realize the magnitude of the
problem,” he affirmed. Another difficulty he discovered is arresting
those who practice exploitation, because the crime is hard to
characterize.
Research
A 2001/2002 study coordinated by the Center of
Reference, Studies, and Actions for Children and Adolescents (Cecria)
identified 241 overland, sea, and air routes for sexual exploitation in
Brazil. 131 of them are international routes. Inside the
country, exploitation networks were confirmed to be active in all
regions of the country, but the largest concentration of cases is in the
North and Northeast. Most of the victims of trafficking are women and
adolescents between 15 and 25 — the group most affected includes girls
between 15 and 17. The profile of the victims shows that they generally
come from families with low levels of income and schooling, reside on
the outskirts of urban areas, live with relatives, and, in many
instances, have already suffered some kind of sexual violence at home.
A Manifesto against Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of
Children and Youth was handed to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, on
Tuesday. The document is signed by 65 thousand transportation sector
professionals and owners who pledge to combat this crime.
The coordinator of the Social Service of
Transportation and the National Apprenticeship Service of Transportation
(Seste/Senat), Norma Avelar, calls for the "use of the power of this
sector to combat the sexual exploitation of children and youth." Luciana
Vasconcelos
http://www.brazzil.com/2004/html/articles/may04/p143may04.htm
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