Malaga woman wins legal battle after finding strength in motherhood to sue her uncle for sexual abuse

A court ruling has acknowledged the sexual abuse Carmen endured at the hands of her uncle when she was nine years old.

The provincial court has sentenced her uncle to ten years in prison for the abuse he subjected her 24 years ago. She found the strength to report him six years ago, after learning she was pregnant with a girl.

The road has not been easy, but now she can finally close the most painful chapter of her life. Following the ruling, Carmen addressed everybody who has suffered sexual abuse in their childhood: "Bring these assaults and abuses to light, report them. These processes, although long and difficult, are very healing."

The abuse allegedly started in 2002 and went on for months. According to the accusation, nine-year-old Carmen used to go to the defendant's home to play with a cousin. The man would allegedly take advantage of their close family relationship and his physical superiority to carry out the assaults.

The court found it proven that the defendant abused the victim for months. During that time, he used intimidation to convince her that it had to remain a secret. "They won't believe you and they'll be angry with you," he told Carmen at the time.

Carmen was able to convince her parents to stop visiting her aunt and uncle's house, although she never revealed the reason. As the judges explained, the little girl remained silent for fear of "harming the family, which was very close-knit".

It took Carmen many years to come to terms with what she had experienced. The first time she spoke of that horror was in 2017, when she sought psychological help to heal the trauma and the feelings of guilt and shame she had carried since childhood.

She didn't take the step of filing a complaint until 2020. Knowing she was pregnant with a girl gave her the strength to begin the legal process.

Carmen finally saw her uncle in the court in Malaga on 10 March. Afterwards, she spoke to the media, still visibly shaken, but hopeful. She no longer had to relive the trauma to prove the hell she had endured as a child.

"We have to speak out. Silence only helps the abuser," she said after the hearing, during which she had waived her right to compensation. "I don't want his money, I want justice," she said.

The court had "no doubt whatsoever" that the complainant's account was "fully credible". The court sentenced her uncle to ten years in prison for the continuous sexual abuse of a minor under the age of 13, with a ten-year restraining order banning him from approaching or communicating with the victim.

Carmen, her lawyer and her family, who have been her greatest support throughout this ordeal, celebrated the verdict. "Justice has been served so that these kinds of people are where they belong: in prison."

In cases of child abuse, there are several organisations to turn to for help.

- Asociación Redime on Calle de la Sierra de Gata 20, Churriana (Malaga); 603 78 39 24

- Asociación Con.ciencia on Calle Maestranza 8 (Malaga); 635 33 17 02

- Asociación ALAS (Adolescencia Libre de Agresión Sexual) in Benalmádena; assists minors who are victims of sexual crimes and their families; 642 507 554