Bolivia has one of the highest levels of violence against women in Latin America.
A recent poll revealed that 53 per cent of Bolivian women said they had been victims of physical violence, ranging from pushes and slaps to attacks with knives or firearms.
In addition, a recent study by the World Health Organization (WHO) indicated that, of the 12 countries in the region, Bolivia ranks first in terms of physical violence against women and second, after Haiti, in terms of sexual violence.
To tackle this problem, trade union organisations representing female peasants in Bolivia have decided to launch a nationwide campaign to raise awareness about the laws offering protection against all forms of violence.
This week, Felipa Huanca, Executive Secretary of the female peasant federation Federación de Mujeres Campesinas Bartolina Sisa in La Paz underlined the fact that a comprehensive law was passed on 9 March, 2013 to guarantee women a life free from violence.
Huanca condemned the high levels of violence against women in Bolivia: "It is unacceptable that one sister after another is found dead, and that’s why we are going to start sharing information about the law on violence against women."
She also pointed out that Bolivia’s national and district authorities must guarantee that the laws defending and protecting women are respected and enforced.
"A great deal of grassroots work is needed, as the law is already there but we don’t know who is going to enforce it. That’s why decisions have to be made by the authorities; if there is no awareness, the law will not be observed," said Huanca.
She also commented that awareness-raising work was going to be started at community level, leading to the adoption of measures, but that the same needs to be done in the big cities, given that "it is impossible to walk safely in El Alto [one of Bolivia’s fast-growing urban centres]," for example.
The police needs to work closely with social organisations in urban and rural areas.
Strong coordination is required, as Huanca points out, given that, "there are police officers who, rather than defending women, beat them and mistreat them, which reflects badly on the forces of law and order."
In October, a national campaign was launched with the slogan "El Valiente no es Violento", which translates as “The Valiant are not Violent.” The campaign was directed mainly at men, and makes a public appeal for the prevention of violence.
In a report by the Bolivian newspaper La Razón, the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Betty Tejada, said that since the law on violence against women came into force, 12 cases of violence against women are reported per day, across the country.
Tejada added that the legislation is promoting "a culture of denunciation" whereby women no longer feel afraid to report acts of physical or psychological violence.
"A culture of denunciation that is promoted when women suffering violence feel they will be given a response, when there is a culture of how to file a complaint, because some women are misled by bad lawyers," she said.
For the United Nations resident coordinator in Bolivia, Katherine Grigsby, "violence is deeply rooted in values that promote an imbalance of power between men and women at all levels of society. If we change these values, these stereotypes, we can prevent it and eradicate it."
