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Amnesty International Releases Report on Sexual Vi

Monday, December 22, 2008
Amnesty International (AI) released a comprehensive report on sexual violence against girls in Haiti in late November of 2008.  Over half of the 105 rapes reported in Haiti by the end of November were committed against girls under the age of 18, according to one of the few organizations in the country which collect rape statistics. The AI report includes findings on rape as a political weapon, the role of discrimination and poverty, and the state’s response.

AI recommends implementating Haiti's National Plan to Combat Violence Against Women, adopted in 2005, to research, support and prevent violence against women. To date, the Plan has not been properly implemented due to a lack of funding. In 2005, a presidential decree reclassified rape as a crime, rather than a crime against morals.  Since then there have only been a few trials for rape.  Haiti does not otherwise prohibit violence against women in its criminal law, which is rare for the Americas region. AI also recommends increasing the prosecution of crimes of sexual violence, training judges, providing free legal advice to victims, and educating the community.

For the full report click here (French) (PDF, 36 pages).

Compiled from: Haiti: Don't turn your back on girls: Sexual violence against girls in Haiti, Amnesty International (27 November 2008); Haiti: No protection for girls against sexual violence, Press Release, Amnesty International (27 November 2008).

For More Information

For more information, please see the sexual assault section of this website.

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