The Amparo y Justicia Foundation, together with Ediciones UC, presented the book “Sexual Crimes against Children: A Decade of Insights,” a publication that brings together the work of 38 national and international authors and systematizes ten years of research, training, and intervention in this field.
Edited by the Foundation’s Executive Director, María Elena Santibáñez, and the Head of Training, Carolina Puyol, the book offers an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the Chilean justice system in response to sexual crimes affecting children and adolescents.
The work compiles lessons drawn from more than a decade of academic research, litigation, and intersectoral work promoted by the Amparo y Justicia Foundation, with the aim of strengthening the protection of and access to justice for victims of sexual violence.
Throughout its chapters, the book addresses a child-rights-based approach, the evolution of legal frameworks over recent decades, and the inherent complexity of these forms of violence, providing tools and reflections aimed at improving judicial system practices and promoting interventions better aligned with the needs and experiences of victims.
During the launch, the Executive Director of the Amparo y Justicia Foundation—an academic at the Faculty of Law of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and one of the book’s editors—María Elena Santibáñez, emphasized that this publication emerges from the intersection of academic reflection and practical experience working with victims.
“Justice cannot be limited to the formal application of the law. It must understand the impact that its practices have on the lives of children and adolescents who are victims of sexual violence. This book arises from that experience and from the need to continue raising the standard of the State’s response,” she stated.
Santibáñez further noted that the book represents a concrete expression of public advocacy, as it systematizes lessons built from professional practice, interinstitutional dialogue, and reflection emerging from the handling of real cases in all their human, legal, and ethical complexity. She added that the book also reflects the sustained coordinating role played by the Amparo y Justicia Foundation—building bridges between disciplines, sectors, and bodies of knowledge—along with the conviction of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile regarding the importance of education connected to the country’s challenges.
The publication is the result of a diploma program developed over more than a decade by the Amparo y Justicia Foundation and the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, an initiative that has contributed to the training of hundreds of professionals who today hold key roles within the justice system and in the protection of the rights of children and adolescents.
