The Paramilitaries and Sexual Violence Along Colombia's Caribbean Coast

This investigation tells the stories of Carolina and Karen, two survivors of sexual violence by Hernán Giraldo, one of Colombia’s most infamous paramilitary commanders. They are part of over 200 girls and women who were abused by Giraldo and his men in the northern Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range.

Giraldo used sexual abuse and rape to cement his absolute control over local populations and dominate this part of Colombia from the 1990s until the early 2000s. Years later, Karen and Carolina continue to suffer from the physical and psychological scars of these crimes as they try to move on with their lives.