Behind the Numbers of Violence Against Women in Colombia

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of how some government entities construct the statisticaldata of violence against women in Colombia. It describes the institutional coursemade by the data to become the statistics we query in reports and newsletters. In addition,it analyzes the concepts on which the measurements are based and their implicationsin understanding the phenomenon. More than the statistical data, here the interestis in the research instruments and the way in which they are presented. For this reason,documentary analysis and interviews were used as the main research tools. It is concludedthat despite the efforts of the State to “measure to control violence” and those whoperpetrated it, it is urgent to adjust the procedures for capturing information; and to bemore efficient, systematic and sensitive to violence committed against women.