Bolivia: The Defensoria de la Mujer, its functions, relation to the police, and effectiveness of its work (1999-2000)

A representative of the office of the Ombudsman (Defensor del Pueblo) of Bolivia in La Paz stated during a 17 November telephone interview that defensoría de la mujer is a colloquial term for Integrated Legal Services (Servicios legales integrales, SLI), a service established by law and provided by municipal governments, as part of the Municipal Women's Program (Programas Municipales de la Mujer, PMM). The representative stated that the Integrated Legal Services assists women who are victims of domestic or intra-family violence, or of any abuse of their human rights as women (derechos humanos de la mujer) (ibid.). The SLI cooperates with the Family and Women Protection Brigades (Brigadas de Protección a la Mujer y la Familia), which are units of the police forces that can intervene when such violence or abuses are reported (ibid.). The representative added that the SLI equivalent that deals with abuses against children and minors is formally called defensorías (full name: Defensorías de la Niñez y Adolescencia) (ibid.). Information on the work of the Services and the Protection Brigades published by the Office of the Ombudsman was not available to the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

A legal database established by the Lawyers' College of Bolivia provides the full text in Spanish of Supreme Decree No. 25087 of 6 July 1998, which regulates Law 1674 of 15 December 1995 on Family or Domestic Violence (JurisBol 13 Mar. 1999). The text provides details on the functions of both the SLIs and the Protection Brigades. What follows is an unofficial paraphrased translation of the main points of the text relating to the SLIs to be used as a reference only; the terms used do not necessarily correspond to terms used in a legal context in Canada.

SLIs are support institutions in the fights against intra-family violence, a permanent municipal service providing psycho-socio-legal defence (defensa psico-socio-legal) to women, and to provide an adequate handling of reports of violence and discrimination (ibid., Article 20).

SLIs shall support and supervise community work imposed as an alternative penalty as referred to in Articles II, 12 and 13 of Law 1674; the judge handling a case decides which public, private or civil institution will handle the community work referred to in the Law. SLIs shall provide psychological counselling to the victimizers when directed to do so by a judge (ibid., Article 6).

Health providers are required to report within 48 hours any cases of violence which come to their attention, to the Protection Brigades or, lacking these at their locality, to the police, public prosecutors in family law (fiscalia de familia), family court judges, or SLIs (ibid., Article 13).

Both Supreme Decree No. 25087 and Law 1674, available in the JurisBol database, contain information on possible legal recourse and measures in cases of domestic violence. However, no translation of the texts of these laws could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

The Bolivian daily El Tiempo reported on 7 August 2000 that the municipal defensorías (both of women and of youths) in districts 1 and 2 of the city of Sucre handled 236 reports in the first semester of 2000. The report states that 101 of the victims were males and 135 were females ranging between 5 and 21 years of age, adding that the reports often "go nowhere" (quedan en nada) as the victims desists from pursuing the matter, and it is rarely known if the abuse ceased after the report was made (ibid.). El Tiempo states that sometimes a case surfaces when it makes the news and it is too late (i.e.: the victim is killed), and cites as an example the case of wife beating and killing on New Year's Day 2000 that was reported by neighbours and passed to the courts; a prison sentence of four years was given to the victimizer (ibid.). The report describes some of the reasons why women can be reluctant to denounce domestic violence, including the social problems that could be associated with such actions (ibid.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

References

Defensor del Pueblo, La Paz. 17 November 2000. Telephone interview with representative.

El Tiempo [Sucre]. 7 August 2000. "En seis meses las defensorías recibieron 236 denuncias de agresión." [Accessed 16 Nov. 2000]

JurisBol [La Paz]. 13 March 1999. "Decreto Supremo Nº 25087: Reglamento de la Ley de Violencia Familiar o Domestica." [Accessed 17 Nov. 2000]