International
Colombia allows sexual assault victims to denounce alleged attackers online
AFP
Sexual abuse victims in Colombia will be allowed to publish accusations against their alleged attackers on social media following a decision by the country’s top court published on Friday.
The constitutional court deemed that dozens of posts on Facebook and other social media platforms using the hashtag #acosadorsexual (sexual aggressor), posted alongside photos of the alleged perpetrators, can remain in place.
The court ruled that any harm “potentially suffered” by an alleged aggressor due to the publication was “inferior to the harm suffered” by a victim if rendered silent due to fear of being sued over the post.
The ruling came following a complaint by a man who was accused of abuse by his partner.
The young woman said on Facebook that her partner, a university classmate, abused her, taking advantage of the “state of weakness” she was in after consuming “alcohol and other psychoactive substances.”
In the post, the woman said the incident was “very difficult for me and my mental health” and that she took two months to report it out of “fear.”
The post has been shared more than 200 times and liked almost 500 times.
The man denies the accusations and claims their encounter was “consensual.”
Denouncing what he said was an attack on his “honor and reputation,” the man requested the “deletion of the publication in question, the retraction of the information in it and a public apology.”
But the court rejected his complaint and said that “victims of crime have the right to freely and publicly denounce the events they suffered.”
The court added that it considered those claims to be based on “personal experience” and done in “good faith.”
The court said the “condition of a woman who allegedly has been the victim of sexual violence” deserves “special” protection.
The decision overturned a ruling by a lower court in June 2020 that had sided with the man.
In 2020, more than 18,000 people, including almost 15,500 women, turned to Colombia’s medical investigation body over alleged instances of sexual abuse.
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
International
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating two explosions that occurred early Wednesday, one on a road in the southern part of the country and another under a bridge in Guayas province. These incidents follow the car bomb explosion in the coastal city of Guayaquil, also in Guayas, which occurred the day before and left one person dead and 30 injured.
Press reports indicate that one person was injured and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion on the Cuenca-Girón-Pasaje road in the south.
“Besides yesterday’s explosion in Guayaquil, we have received reports of explosives placed on bridges along the Guayaquil-Machala and Machala-Cuenca routes to disrupt traffic,” said Roberto Luque, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
On his X social media account, Luque reported that authorities have been deployed to the sites to assess the damage and determine the current condition of the structures.
“What they haven’t achieved with their call for a strike, some are trying to achieve through terrorism,” he stated, referring to the 24 days of protests organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) against rising diesel prices and other demands.
The protests, called at a national level, have Imbabura province as their epicenter. Roadblocks have also been reported in the northern part of Pichincha province, whose capital is Quito, while activities in the rest of the country continue normally.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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