The Gender Equality Policies area of the EUROsociAL+ European Union Programme and the AIAMP Specialised Gender Network, organised a week of work in Bogotá on the Regional Protocol for investigating sexual offences.
This protocol is designed as a tool to strengthen institutions in countries and improve the criminal investigation process against such crimes, based on sharing good practices and recognising common problems in the region.
Although the construction of the Regional Protocol for the Investigation of Cases of Sexual Violence against women and persons of feminine identity is a process in which EUROsociAL+ has been collaborating with UN Women since early 2021, the physical work meeting in Bogotá from 4 to 7 April 2022 was of crucial importance to agree upon its contents.
During the first two days, the objectives, scope and approaches of the protocol, and its format were discussed. Likewise, a definition of sexual violence and rape from the International Law of Human Rights and the International Criminal Court was presented, and there was a discussion of the contexts where sexual violence occurs, its components and, finally, a debate on access to justice, criminal action and re-victimisation in cases of sexual violence. The final two days focused on aspects of investigation, such as devising strategies, planning interviews and gathering evidence, victims’ rights during criminal proceedings, protective measures and reparation, and the contributions of international cooperation and civil society organisations in investigations into sexual violence. The experience of the Colombian Attorney General’s Office was crucial in all these discussions, because it is the only country in the region that has had a protocol for the criminal investigation of these crimes since 2016.
Despite the different ways in which each country addresses and investigates sexual violence, this joint effort showed that it is possible to set minimum standards that are applicable to national contexts and ensure the due process in investigations, seeking to reduce impunity and re-victimisation. The following work was done: protocol focused on victims of sexual violence.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the prosecutors of Argentina coordinated by the REG-AIAMP, Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, and Panama, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, EUROsociAL+, the experts Françoise Roth from UN Women and Claudia Martin from American University, as well as the organisations Corporación Humanas, SISMA Mujer and Colombia Diversa.
As a result of this meeting, the necessary inputs were obtained for drafting the first document of the Regional Protocol. In the opening panel, the European Union ambassador in Colombia, Patricia Llombart, reiterated her commitment to eradicating all types of gender violence by supporting public policies that promote gender equality in Colombia. EUROsociAL+ hopes to continue contributing to the construction of this regional protocol.
Text by Ángela Salgado, EUROsociAL+ expert
