THE number of rapes in Brazil increased by 6.5% in the past year compared to 2022, with a rape recorded on average every six minutes, while the number of homicides fell for the third consecutive year, according to a report published today.

Latin America’s largest country counted 83,988 rapes last year, a record number since the data began being recorded in 2011 by the non-governmental organization Forum Brasileiro de Segurança Publica (FBSP), based on police records.

In its annual report, the FBSP reports a 91.5% increase in the number of rapes compared to 2011 and “a continued increase over the last 13 years”.

Among rape victims in Brazil, 88.2% are women. 61.6% are under the age of 14, while in 64% of these cases the perpetrator is a family member.

The increase in incidents recorded at police stations shows “a greater awareness (…), victims are more encouraged to file a complaint, but we cannot ignore the fact that this number is very high,” Samira Bueno explained to AFP. executive director of the NGO, judging that this scourge remains underestimated.

“Since the majority of victims are children, this type of violence can take place for a long time before it is recognized by a person in charge or the school,” she added.

In terms of homicides, Brazil recorded fewer than 47,000 for the first time in 2023 since the NGO began recording data 13 years ago, a total of 46,328.

This translates to a 3.4% drop compared to 2022, the third consecutive year-on-year decline in this country of 203 million people.

But the homicide rate, 22.8 per 100,000 population, is nearly four times the global average (5.8 per 100,000 population), as calculated by the United Nations.

“Brazil is home to about 3% of the world’s population, but we record there almost 10% of all homicides committed on the planet,” states the president of the Forum Brasileiro de Segurança Publica, Renato Sergio de Lima, in a press release.

The report counted 6,393 people killed during police operations in 2023, a slightly lower number compared to 2022. Among them, 82.7% were black and 71.7% were youth ages 12 to 29.