Association Alas
Sections
Highlight
Sections
Highlight
Ana Barreales
Malaga
Friday, 25 April 2025, 10:50
The latest annual report from the Andalusian public prosecutor's office found that sexual crimes committed by minors have increased considerably. According to its head, Ana Tárrega, the causes lie in consumption of pornography and early sexual relations.
Alas (wings in Spanish), created barely a year ago, is an association that offers comprehensive legal and psychological care to minors who are victims of sexual abuse and their families. The association offers help even if the victims decide not to report it, because they will need psychological support regardless. In those few months they have already handled a dozen cases concerning children aged between ten and 16, with their respective families. Carolina Macías, vice-president of Alas, explains, "Parents are often slow to see what is happening because they think it's something that will not happen to them."
Alas works to raise awareness among parents and legal sectors. "There is no risk profile. The figure you least suspect could be the aggressor. If it's an adult to a minor, they usually have a friendly approach. If it's a teacher, it's usually the favourite one," explained Rocío Morales, president of the Alas association.
It can take an average of ten years before a victim of child sexual abuse can verbalise what happened. Psychologically, they suffer from disgust, shame and guilt - their trauma only resurfacing years, if not decades, after the abuse.
In 2021, the statute of limitations was extended and the threshold for filing reports of child sex abuse extends until an underage victim reaches 40 years old.
The association was founded upon a case of abuse between a 12 and 14-year-old. The girl reported the non-consensual acts to the police, who made her testify multiple times, and handled the situation unprofessionally.
Those cases of assault between minors are particularly difficult due to both parties' unawareness. Sex education is vital in order to raise awareness of what healthy relationships are like.
While six of Alas' cases are minors suffering abuse from adults, four are cases between minors. So far, three minors have been sentenced. Instead of detention centres, they can go through probation schemes and socio-educational programmes because the law on minors aims to rehabilitate them through their sentences.
In cases between minors, proof of consent is very important. While aggressors tend to initially deny allegations, throughout the procedure they usually realise that what they did was not right.
"These cases have increased by almost 400 per cent in the last few years. 87 per cent of children between the ages of eight and 11 have seen porn online. Sex education is scarce, therefore children are informed through social media and increasingly violent porn," said Morales. Children need to be aware of their right to say what they do and don't want to do and of the boundaries that can't be exceeded without express consent.
Alas staff work on a voluntary basis. They have two spaces provided by the Diputación in La Noria in Malaga and in Benalmádena. They can be contacted through their 24-hour helpline (642 50 75 54) or their Instagram @alasasociacion and the association can provide support in English, Spanish, Italian, German and French. Alas is set apart from similar foundations because they don't require a police report or referral to provide victims support.
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Esta funcionalidad es exclusiva para registrados.
Reporta un error en esta noticia
Debido a un error no hemos podido dar de alta tu suscripción.
Por favor, ponte en contacto con Atención al Cliente.
¡Bienvenido a SURINENGLISH!
Tu suscripción con Google se ha realizado correctamente, pero ya tenías otra suscripción activa en SURINENGLISH.
Déjanos tus datos y nos pondremos en contacto contigo para analizar tu caso
¡Tu suscripción con Google se ha realizado correctamente!
La compra se ha asociado al siguiente email
Comentar es una ventaja exclusiva para registrados
¿Ya eres registrado?
Inicia sesiónNecesitas ser suscriptor para poder votar.