MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguayan women denounce “rape culture”

A string of rapes has been reported over the past few weeks, thus prompting a reaction from feminist groups. Photo: Sebastián Astorga

Thousands of Uruguayan women marched Friday down the streets of Montevideo to protest against what they called the “rape culture” and urged the Government of President Luis Lacalle Pou to take measures aimed at protecting them.

Demonstrators chanted “No is no” or “It's not presumption, it's rape” and “Let it burn,” in their condemnation of sexual violence after a string of cases were reported in recent weeks, including one 30-year-old woman who was reportedly gang-raped by four men, who were summoned by the courts to surrender samples for DNA testing.

In the early hours of last Sunday, the woman reported she has been raped in an apartment in a coastal neighborhood of Montevideo, where she had arrived after meeting one of them in a night bar and agreeing to have consensual sexual relations. The rape was confirmed by forensic analysis.

During the protest, the demonstrators read a statement denouncing that “rape culture is continuing to maintain that men have sexual 'needs' or 'impulses' that they cannot control.”

“We are faced every day with speeches that point to fear, silence, doubt,” the women went on, as asked the State to take action to protect them as well as expand sexual education nationwide.