Escalating violence and organized crime across Ecuador is having a disastrous effect on children’s rights. The transient shift to online information, as well as threats from criminal groups, have affected their right to be informed in a safe environment.
After President Daniel Noboa declared an “armed conflict” against gangs on Jan. 9, Ecuador’s Ministry of Education temporarily suspended all face-to-face categories and shifted to online learning nationwide, affecting around 4. 3 million children, according to UNICEF. In recent months, the ministry had already opted for online education in towns such as Guayaquil and Durán, among the most affected by gang violence.
But as the world has learned about the Covid-19 pandemic, online learning can expose young people to sexual violence, whether online or offline.
Civil society representatives I interviewed over the past year said that online learning makes it difficult for schools to encounter cases of sexual violence among young people and for young people to report such incidents. Consultant to Ministry of Education protocols in identifying symptoms of abuse in survivors, which can be complicated to do if young people are not in normal contact with schoolArray
In some provinces of Ecuador, masked assailants – in one case armed – allegedly entered online categories to threaten academics and teachers.
As of last week, all schools have resumed in-person activities, but increased organized criminal activity is making it more difficult to fight sexual violence.
Ecuador has long enjoyed a peak of impunity for perpetrators of sexual violence against children. Young survivors and their families are threatened with silence by abusers, who may avoid filing a complaint or withdraw the complaint. Cases of sexual violence may also go unreported due to threats or extortion against school staff, who may fear repercussions or lack of government help if they report such crimes.
According to a civil society representative who has worked in schools in Guayaquil, when the perpetrators are related to drug trafficking or other crimes – such as when it comes to organized crime – victims do not need to report violence against them.
Whether Ecuadorian youth are informed online or offline in this time of instability, young people have the right to be informed in a safe environment. The government deserves to make sure that survivors can safely report sexual violence, that threats and violence are opposed by staff who report cases. They are very well investigated and prosecuted, and that the survivors can unleash justice.