Migrant women and sexual and gender-based violence at the Colombia-Venezuela border: A qualitative study

Abstract

Background Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) affects women and girls in multiple ways. During migration and within humanitarian settings, migrant women and girls are exposed to different forms of SGBV and to higher vulnerabilities compared with those men encounter. Survivors of this kind of violence face challenges in accessing healthcare for reasons that not only include legal status, language barriers, discrimination, misinformation on the availability of healthcare services, but also the growing spread of conservative views regarding sexual and reproductive health which pose a considerable threat to human rights. This study was guided by the question of how humanitarian emergency preparedness and response initiatives within four cities at the Colombo-Venezuelan border are addressing SGBV. The goal of this research was threefold: first, to explain the level of implementation of the second goal of the MISP, which is to prevent and respond to the consequences of sexual violence; second, to assess the availability of services for migrants who have experienced some type of sexual violence; and third, to understand the perceptions of migrants regarding sexual and gender-based violence. Methods and Findings This study assessed the degree of implementation of the Minimal Initial Service Package (MISP) using a set of tools developed by the Inter-Agency Working Group on Reproductive Health in Crises. This study combined the use of different qualitative methods: i) a literature review; ii) 23 interviews with key informants on sexual and reproductive health; iii) an assessment of 21 health institutions which provide services to migrants; and iv) 24 focus groups with migrants between the ages of 14 to 49 years old (241 participants, of which 121 were women and 120 were men). This research was conducted in four cities at the Colombo-Venezuelan border where there was the highest concentration of migrants. Ethical approval was granted by Profamilia´s Advisory Committee on Research Ethics. Although preventing and managing the consequences of sexual violence is the second objective of the MISP, this study found several barriers for the guarantee of comprehensive healthcare for survivors: Venezuelan migrants do not usually consider that healthcare is a need for them after they have survived sexual violence; SGBV during migration is a common occurrence according to key informants; in three out of four cities there were existing organizations working on SGBV, but not all of them could offer comprehensive healthcare services in response to sexual violence. Conclusions In this study, we observed that migrants tend to be more exposed to Sexual and Gender-Based Violence due to the normalization of such forms of violence in the Colombian and Venezuelan cultures. Findings suggest that Venezuelan migrants are facing complex SGBV issues during the humanitarian emergency at the Colombia-Venezuela border. Recommendations include local health systems response ...

Narratives of experiences of violence of Venezuelan migrant women sheltered at the northwestern Brazilian border

“…This knowledge of the law and the rules of the shelters were used by some women as a strategy to control the violent behavior of their partners. This situation was different than the findings of a study with Venezuelan migrants in Colombia who reported not being fully aware of the local laws regarding sexual violence and IPV [29]. This difference in knowledge may be because the women in our study were living in UN shelters; in addition, in Colombia, most women reported an irregular legal status.…”

“…Migrant women feel more isolated in the situation of domestic violence, frequently with language barriers, a lack of knowledge regarding the services that may help them in this situation, and no knowledge of the ways to access these services [29,41]. Additionally, they are uncomfortable with the possibility of misunderstandings with their cultural and religious beliefs [47].…”

“…One of the responses to the migration crisis is the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) developed by the Interagency Working Group in Reproductive Health (IAWG) [27] to identify, prevent and treat the consequences of violence among other SRH issues. Even though this is a great step in the direction of improving healthcare for migrant women, the suffering of victims of violence is increased by the limited availability of multidisciplinary SRH services that offer medical and psychological care for victims of violence and women's lack of knowledge regarding SRHR [14,28,29].…”

Migrant Women: Trapped in the Vicious Circle of Harassment and Inequality

“…iStock/RadekProcyk special needs during pregnancy or when caring for children but be discriminated against or misinformed over the availability of healthcare services. 7 According to the World Health Organization, little attention is paid to the maternal and newborn health of migrant women and their children compared to the conditions available to nonmigrants. 8 The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted health services all over the globe, so migrants and refugees are often last in the national public health queues.…”

Sexual and reproductive health and rights of migrants: strengthening regional research capacity

“… 5 In Colombia, for example, recent reports from Venezuelan migrants provide evidence of increased gender-based violence, unmet family planning needs, and inadequate access to maternal health-care services. 6 …”