Abstract

VENDRELL FERRE, Joan. Victims, rapist, avengers, and, cronistas: On sexual violence and its representation in the State of Morelos. Nueva antropol [online]. 2005, vol.20, n.65, pp.131-147. ISSN 0185-0636.

This text is part of the project "Body, gender and sexuality in Mexico: the management of the body and sexuality process in the State of Morelos" with the objective of presenting some significant findings on sexual violence. The text is divided in two parts: first the author presents a theoretical methodological framework, from a socio-cultural perspective. Second, an overview of the sexual violence, where the chronicles published by the daily press (taken from the section of "Justice" of the newspaper Union of Morelos) are analyzed and in contrast with the testimonies provided by informants. Due to the absence of a precise Penal Code the press decides the definition of "crimes against the freedom and the normal psico-sexual development" most of the times with a rhetorical, sensationalist presentation of the news. The lack of rigor, information and precision in the treatment of the different cases expresses the social indifference with which this type of crimes are seen in the socio-cultural context with a discourse of good and evil, guilt and victims and "avenging" civil employees. Meanwhile, the profound socio-cultural causes of the sexual violence remain unseen for government officials as much as for the public.

Keywords : sexual violence; cultural theory; law; domestic servant.