Sexual Violence in a Colombian Municipality: Victims’ and Offenders’ Characteristics, 2011-2020

Introduction: Sexual violence is a public health problem included in political and social agendas worldwide. It is a medical emergency seen in health services, which are the main source of record-keeping by means of public health surveillance systems. Objective: To analyze the sociodemographic characteristics of victims of sex offenses and their offenders in the municipality of Envigado, Antioquia, between 2011 and 2020. Materials and methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study that analyzed all the sexual violence records reported in the Envigado Public Health Surveillance System for gender and intrafamilial violence (file code INS-875) during the 2011-2020 period. Results: A total of 807 cases of sexual violence were recorded between 2011 and 2020; 62.0% were cases of sexual abuse against persons under 18 years of age, and 82.3% of the victims were adolescent women suffering sexual violence exerted by relatives. The main aggressors were men (99.1%) with a median age of 26 years. Conclusion: Sexual violence has increased over time and in 2020, the year of population confinement due to COVID-19, the rates in women and in the life courses of early childhood, adolescence, and youth were the highest during the study period.