Warning: Graphic content It allegedly happened on a bus, in broad daylight and in front of witnesses. A 16-year-old boy attending a secondary school run by the Peruvian navy says he was raped by classmates as their soccer team was driving back from a tournament. The Peruvian Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the case, which since occurring on Sept. 15 has caused uproar in the country and highlighted a rise in sexual violence among students. Authorities initially apprehended 10 teenagers from the school, the Liceo Naval Almirante Guise, where most students are the children of naval officers. A court in Lima has ordered six of the 10 to be detained at a juvenile facility for four months pending trial. The navy says it has suspended several employees and administrators pending investigation and that it “categorically rejects any act of violence, abuse or violation of the integrity of all students.” Even so, experts say the case reflects systemic failures in schools and government, including a reluctance to confront abuse and a weakened sex education system. They also point to a broader cultural problem that normalizes violence and equates masculinity with the subjugation of others. ‘Tip of the iceberg’ The incident comes amid rising levels of sexual violence involving students. According to data from the Ministry of Education, reports of sexual violence among students increased by 35 per cent in the first eight months of 2026 (1,198) compared to the same period in 2025 (885). This category includes groping, acts of a sexual nature, harassment, cyberbullying and rape. Researcher Eduardo Cárcamo, a specialist in gender and masculinity studies, described the case involving the 16-year-old boy as “the tip of the iceberg” and warned against what he called the “normalization of the situation.” He said schools and the government were reluctant to address the growing problem, particularly in the wake of recent changes to the curriculum surrounding sex education. “Politicians have fought so hard to roll back comprehensive sex education in schools that they forgot to strengthen it,” he said. In May, in compliance with a law pushed by the conservative majority in Congress, the Ministry of Education introduced new guidelines for sex education based on what it called “scientific, biological, and ethical principles.” The new guidelines have been criticized for omitting reference to sexual rights, orientation, gender identity and equality – themes critics say need to be understood to prevent sexual abuse. A masculinity problem? Experts say the statistics reflect a systemic problem with local concepts of masculinity. “There’s something specific about the way we’ve been taught to be men: it’s always about constantly proving it. And one way to do that is by controlling the other person. We men have learned that if we can comment on the body, we can also touch it. If we can comment on it and touch it, we can also assault it and rape it,” said Cárcamo. Psychotherapist Giselle Silva, who holds a PhD in child and adolescent psychopathology, had a similar view. “This situation speaks to everyone in the country. The context is a culture of violence in which what is at issue is the construction of masculinity,” said Silva, founder of the Casita de los Picaflores community psychology centre in Cusco. “Being masculine means subjugating others, within a system where empathy for another’s suffering is lost and the other person’s body becomes an object.” What next? Peruvian President Keiko Fujimori has demanded “a rigorous and swift investigation” into what she described as a “very serious” case and has called for anyone found guilty to face “the full weight of the law.” Jorge Petrozzi, the attorney for the 16-year-old’s family, told CNN that the defendants — who must be prosecuted in the juvenile criminal justice system — could face a sentence of “between six and eight years” if found guilty. Speaking to the local press, the father of one of the detained teenagers asked for the media not to ruin the lives of those identified as suspects. “They were playing on the bus; it got out of hand,” he said, before adding that those responsible should still “have to pay” and that the victim was “absolutely right.” Following his comments, the alleged victim’s mother gave an interview to the Peruvian channel Panamericana in which she called for justice “without hatred or revenge,” saying, the attack “was not physical aggression or a joke; (but) rape, a sexual assault.” In addition to the detained teenagers, the attorney Petrozzi said he intended to pursue criminal and civil actions “against all those responsible” — potentially including adults present at the scene who failed to prevent the assault and educational authorities. Meanwhile, the director of the Regional Education Office of Metropolitan Lima, Cornelio Gonzáles, has accused school administrators of negligence, alleging that they did not report the incident to the police or other authorities as required by protocol. CNN has contacted the school for comment. In a statement addressed to parents, the school said a few days ago that it acted “immediately” and has been cooperating with the investigations. “If responsibility is established, the appropriate disciplinary measures will be taken,” it added. What about the school? Education Minister José Antonio Chang told El Comercio newspaper that Liceo Naval has recorded 50 reports of violence among students over the past two years, 12 of which involve alleged sexual misconduct, such as harassment, inappropriate touching, or assault. CNN has reached out to the ministry about these figures. The Navy had been in charge of administering the school until last week, when the government transferred those duties to the Ministry of Education. Silva, the psychotherapist, said disciplining the children of influential officers was often problematic “in institutions characterized above all by privilege and power structures, where there is even a sense of impunity.” She said unhealthy concepts of masculinity were prevalent in such institutions, which she described as “a system riddled with machismo, subjugation, and hierarchical structures that distort and reinforce” the problem. And what about society? However, she said the problem was not unique to the school but spread through a society that “is becoming more unbearably violent every day.” She blamed this on a loss of sense of community, saying that young people were “very alone” and “absorbing values centered on the imposition of power.” Prevention efforts needed to address these feelings of solitude, she said, and go beyond a sole focus on sex education. Cárcamo, the gender specialist, said society needed to “address the fact that there is another way to be a man – one free from violence,” but lamented that such an approach in Peru “isn’t even it its infancy.” Noting the uproar — particularly on social media — that had surrounded the latest case, Silva said there needed to be “a sincere, honest, and acknowledging approach to the issue.” “This isn’t going to get better,” she said. “Rather, it will continue to get worse as long as there isn’t this culture of acknowledgment, starting at the highest levels.” Gonzalo Zegarra, CNN If you or someone you know is struggling with sexual assault or trauma, the following resources are available to support people in crisis:
