Five years after landmark case, Ecuador’s school abuse worsens

GUAYAQUIL – Five years after a landmark Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruling in the case of Paola Guzmán Albarracín, sexual violence in Ecuador’s classrooms has not only persisted but worsened, rights groups said Thursday.

Between January 2014 and April 2025, 28,955 cases of sexual violence were recorded in the education system — an average of seven new reports each day — according to the Paola Guzmán Observatory. Most victims were girls aged 13 to 15.

The 2020 ruling, issued on Aug 14, recognized for the first time that comprehensive sexuality education is a key component of the right to education. The court ordered the state to tackle what it called a “structural” problem, requiring measures including nationwide implementation of sexual education programs.

Yet recent data suggests the response has been inadequate. In 2024 alone, 21,747 reports of sexual violence in schools were filed, alongside 252 cases of pregnancies among girls and adolescents — a figure 14 times higher than between 2021 and 2023, according to the Education Ministry and the Observatory.

“The State must take real and urgent actions to implement comprehensive sexuality education so Paola’s story is never repeated,” said Catalina Martínez Coral, vice president for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Center for Reproductive Rights, which represented the case alongside CEPAM Guayaquil.

Campaigners say the National Strategy for Comprehensive Sexuality Education (ENEIS), adopted two years ago, has lacked the funding and scope for sustainable nationwide impact. They called for stronger political will and investment to turn the program into an effective tool for prevention.

The court had also flagged persistent impunity in cases of sexual abuse in schools. From July 2020 to October 2023, the Education Ministry opened 338 administrative cases against accused staff. Just 57% ended in dismissals, while 16.6% were closed and 12.4% led only to temporary suspensions.

Public schools accounted for 93% of the incidents, with 3,489 teachers and administrators, as well as 270 other staff members implicated.

“Justice must go beyond the ruling. It should transform the structures that continue to endanger children,” said Lita Martínez Alvarado, executive director of CEPAM Guayaquil. “Comprehensive sexuality education is essential to prevent abuse and end impunity.”

Rights groups say the problem is intertwined with Ecuador’s broader wave of violence, fueled by organized crime. The provinces hardest hit by drug gangs, including Guayas and Manabí, are also those with the highest rates of sexual abuse in schools, suggesting links between systemic social violence and crimes against children.

On the anniversary of the court’s decision, the Center for Reproductive Rights and CEPAM Guayaquil renewed their call to honor Paola’s memory by ensuring that no girl faces the abuse she suffered.

“The message is clear,” Martínez Coral said. “Comprehensive sexuality education saves lives, and it cannot wait any longer.”

This is a translated and edited version of the resport published by the Center for Reproductive Rights on Aug. 14.