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It is the most representative commercial artery of San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica. Hence the name Central Avenue. A reserved pedestrian path from the most central block, which runs from east to west along the boulevard where pedestrians go to or leave their workplaces, shop, work or simply go for a “walk”.

Costa Ricans commonly call this when passing through this street, seeking to be a safe space for women against street harassment. With this aim, the Ministry of Status of Women and the National Women’s Organization (INAMU) announced on March 1 that they are the first businesses and institutions to join the “Safe Avenue” scheme. According to Inamu, street harassment is common in areas like this, which has started to change since 2020 with legislation to combat it.

There, performing or masturbating in public places or by means of paid transportation of people, harassing or cornering and production of audiovisual material with sexual meaning of another person without their consent are established as offences. Sanctions range from 6 months to 24 months in prison.

Yerlin Zuniga, head of strategy at Inamu, told CNN that the plan “includes protection and early counseling for women who are harassed while crossing the street.” He added that interested businesses or organizations receive training on gender issues and reporting mechanisms, and are given a sign that recognizes and distinguishes them as part of the program, which is placed in a visible place in the business.

Minister of Status of Women Cindy Quesada explained that it is about giving shelter to women and if they decide, continue to complain to the authorities. He stressed that safe spaces identified with signs also act as a message to potential criminals, “to deter them, because there is zero tolerance for these types of acts.”

CNN took a tour to find out what passers-by thought. Genesis Scott, for example, said the initiative is important because “there’s a lot of this kind of harassment in San Jose and sometimes it’s not as important as it really is.” Lisette Barrios agreed with Scott and explained that she had endured street harassment, including inappropriate comments and compliments, on Central Avenue. Barrios said that although they made her feel unsafe and uncomfortable, “she kept going, kept going, because she couldn’t start fighting.” Steven Artavia added that he didn’t know the initiative existed, but it feels great because he believes women are at such great risk in the capital. It suggests that the initiative should be made more popular.

In 2021, 293 complaints for violations of the law against street sexual harassment were filed with the Ministry of Public Affairs; 208 in 2022 and 12 more in 2023, totaling 220 complaints a year, according to the Observatory of Gender Violence Women.

911 received 1,253 calls to report street harassment in 2021, and 6 in 10 women in the country say they’ve experienced situations in which they’ve been the target of whistles, compliments, profanity, touching, exhibitionism and even street harassment. from the Inamu press office, CNN’s Ivania Arias told CNN, citing emergency number figures.

More “safe spaces” in other parts of the country

The scheme is a part of the Jati Marg Policy launched by the government in October 2022. According to its official site, https://rutadegenero.inamu.go.cr, “It seeks to create awareness and change society to eradicate harassment. and sexual harassment against women.”

Enamu reported that 2023 closed with 359 “safe spaces” across the country, corresponding to 656 trained people, including “66 shops, businesses and organizations that have already undergone the training process.” Minister Quesada explained that Aadhaar operates according to the schedule of businesses and accredited institutions.

The reported harassment cases do not correspond to a specific route, but businesses distributed in different parts of the country, Zuniga explained. He added that “Avenidazo Seguro” is another initiative to group these spaces into routes. Zuniga explained that the first was launched in July 2023, on the boulevard of Samara, one of Costa Rica’s busiest beaches in the northern Pacific.

For her part, the Minister of Status of Women said she is sure that “more businesses will join the initiative until Central Avenue is transformed into a safe space.”