Non-Consent Sexting in the School Environment. Appreciation in the Ecuadorian Constitutional Jutice

Abstract

The different forms of digital gender-based violence, such as cyberbullying or violation of privacy in digital environments is a real, current and transcendent problem, which is also a higly complex human rights issue for women and girls and requires urgent attention and a responsible approach. It is also a poorly understood issue, which leads to its invisibility and the lack of comprehensive strategies for its prevention. For this reason, reflection on the dangers and transgressions suffered by women in cyberspace should contribute to strengthening the right to a life free of gender-based violence, based on the construction of inclusive, free, open, safe. resilient and egalitarian virtual spaces. 

This paper addresses the figure of sexting that affects children and adolescents in school spaces, based on the jurisprudential line established in Ruling No. 456-20-JP/21, dated November 10, 2021, issued by the Constitutional Court of Ecuador. The decision of the highest body of Ecuadorian constitutional justice is relevant, since it addresses the issue from the perspective of the rights of children and adolescents and restorative justice, being the sanctioning procedures of a subsidiary and exceptional nature. This implies a tension with the idea that the unauthorized dissemination of intimate images is a form of violence, above all it is a crime and even when those involved are minors it entails a serious moral, psychological and emotional damage to the victim. 

The study of the factual, legal and interpretative contents of Ruling No. 456-20-JP/21 allows us to understand the various perspectives of approaching a transcendent issue for children and adolescents and educational communities, at a time when a factor of complexity has been added, such as the use of artificial intelligence in cases of digital sexual violence among adolescents.