La organización, fundada por Andrónico Luksic Craig en 1998, realizó un balance de sus más de dos décadas acompañando a las víctimas; convocó a autoridades a discutir sobre los avances en la respuesta que el Estado le entrega a niños, niñas y adolescentes, e invitó a Eric Beauregard, criminólogo canadiense, a presentar un enfoque victimológico para el estudio del homicidio infantil.
With the participation of representatives from the government, institutions of the criminal justice system, universities, and civil society, the 25th anniversary of Fundación Amparo y Justicia was commemorated. This nonprofit organization has worked to facilitate access to justice and psychosocial reparation for families who have lost a son or daughter due to sexual assault resulting in death.
“I believe the great achievement of Amparo y Justicia has been to make victims visible to the State and society, and to support more than 47 families through such a painful process. After 25 years of work, we strongly renew our commitment to seek better justice for our country, this time focusing on the criminal investigation of homicides of children and adolescents,” said businessman Andrónico Luksic, founder of the organization.
During the event, the Minister of Justice and Human Rights, Mr. Luis Cordero, led a panel discussion that analyzed Amparo y Justicia’s study titled “Advances and Challenges in the Institutional Response to Children and Adolescents Victims of Sexual Crimes in Chile.” In the discussion, he stated that “the country has made great progress in legislation concerning childhood and adolescence, especially regarding sexual crimes—that is very evident. However, updating the regulatory frameworks is not enough,” adding that “what has been very useful about the foundation’s work is demonstrating that assisting victims is not simply about legal representation. In fact, what victims often need is information.”
Regarding the new challenges of Amparo y Justicia, its president, Alejandro Espinoza, stated that “it is urgent to promote improvements in the criminal investigation of homicides of children and adolescents. We need to incorporate the best international practices into our institutions, and ensure that our prosecutors, police, and personnel from the Legal Medical Service have access to training and support from professionals and institutions in developed countries.” It was for this reason that, during the 25th anniversary commemoration, Eric Beauregard, a Canadian criminologist who traveled especially for this event, gave a presentation.
