AMERICA/COLOMBIA - Emergency for violence and attacks against minors

Bucaramanga (Agenzia Fides) - Bucaramanga is a city, capital of the department of Santander, in Colombia. From a recent communication of local authorities it seems that there are 45 reported cases of child abuse per day in the city, but the figure corresponds to only 30% of the attacks. The remaining 70% continues to remain anonymous. The phenomenon is particularly serious and alarming: since the beginning of this year already two children have been allegedly murdered by their parents. According to estimates, 60 boys and 70 girls were abused in Bucaramanga in 2014. In the metropolitan area the figure reaches 241 cases. In the previous year, 24 children were killed, and among these, six were involved in the wars among criminal gangs in the city. The little ones also suffer corporal punishment and humiliation, physical or psychological abuse, neglect and total neglect by parents. In addition to parents, the main perpetrators of this crime are brothers, uncles and aunts and grandparents. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 21/04/2015)