68. The violence perpetrated in the armed conflict victimized women in a differential and aggravated manner. In Order 092 of 2008, the Constitutional Court of Colombia recognized that, in the context of the armed conflict, women were exposed to particular risks and specific vulnerabilities, including the risk of sexual violence. 146 The armed conflict also exacerbated and deepened pre-existing discrimination, exclusion and gender-based violence in the country. 147 In this context, sexual violence against women in Colombia has been a common, widespread, systematic, and invisible practice in the country, committed by all the illegal armed groups and in isolated cases by law enforcement officers. In addition, the most serious thing about this type of violence, according to the Constitutional Court, is that it tends to be officially and unofficially invisible, with victims remaining silent and perpetrators going unpunished. 148 69. At the time of the events, Colombia was also one of the most dangerous countries in the world in which to practice journalism. The National Center for Historical Memory (CNMH) reported that between December 1977 and August 2015, 152 journalists were murdered on account of their profession—not to mention the hundreds of journalists, especially in outlying regions, who have been subjected to threats and kidnapping by the various armed actors, and the many who have been forced into exile. 149 These acts are aggravated by the persistent impunity with which they are met. For instance, the CNMH reported in 2015 that of the 152 murders perpetrated against journalists in Colombia, only four cases had resulted in the conviction of all the perpetrators, while fifty percent of the cases had already been time-barred by the statute of limitations, thus giving rise to a scenario of total impunity. 150 70. With regard to this context, in the 2005 report Impunity, Self-censorship and Armed Internal Conflict: An Analysis of the State of Freedom of Expression in Colombia, the IACHR and its Office of the Special Rapporteur found that “The exercise of freedom of expression in Colombia has been gravely affected in recent decades by the internal armed conflict.” 151 The report pointed out that crimes against journalists have a dual impact on the situation of freedom of expression in Colombia. “On one [hand], the violence looks to eliminate those who attempt to investigate abuses and irregularities and to ensure that their investigations do not come to light. But […] the violence is [also] designed to be a tool of intimidation directed at those conducting these types of investigations.” 152 IV. LEGAL ANALYSIS 71. In this case the petitioner alleged that the international responsibility of the Colombian State for the kidnapping, torture, and sexual violence perpetrated against Jineth Bedoya stems from its failure to comply with its State obligations: i) to protect the journalist from the risk of attacks and threats associated with the practice of journalism, and ii) to investigate with due diligence and, where appropriate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators of the crimes committed. In particular, the petitioner argued that the lack of a thorough and diligent investigation has prevented the identification of the masterminds of the crime and the possible No. 24448, September 12, 2007, cited by: Section on Prosecutor Offices [Director Seccional de Fiscalías], Memorandum No. 0035 dated April 28, 2009 pp. 106-18; Constitutional Court of Colombia, Ruling 005 dated January 26, 2009; and State Council, Third Section, Direct Compensation Process, Judgment No. 68001-23-15-000-1996-01698-01, Reporting Counselor Olga Melida Valle de la Oz, dated February 27, 2013 p. 13. 146 Annex 53. Constitutional Court of Colombia. Ruling 092 of 2008. J. Manuel Jose Cepeda Espinosa. April 14, 2008. Annex 17 to the communication of the petitioner received on May 29, 2015. 147 Annex 53. Constitutional Court of Colombia. Ruling 092 of 2008. J. Manuel Jose Cepeda Espinosa. April 14, 2008. Annex 17 to the communication of the petitioner received on May 29, 2015. 148 Annex 53. Constitutional Court of Colombia. Ruling 092 of 2008. J. Manuel Jose Cepeda Espinosa. April 14, 2008. Annex 17 to the communication of the petitioner received on May 29, 2015. 149 Annex 109. La Palabra y el Silencio: La violencia contra periodistas en Colombia (1977-2015). Report of the National Center for Historical Memory [Centro Nacional de Memoria Histórica]. November 2015, pp. 19-24. 150 Annex 109. La Palabra y el Silencio: La violencia contra periodistas en Colombia (1977-2015). Report of the National Center for Historical Memory. November 2015, pp. 19-24. 151 IACHR. Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression. Impunity, Self-censorship and Armed Internal Conflict: An Analysis of the State of Freedom of Expression in Colombia. OEA/Ser.L/V/II, Doc.51, August 25, 2005. Para. 5. 152 IACHR. Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression. Impunity, Self-censorship and Armed Internal Conflict: An Analysis of the State of Freedom of Expression in Colombia. OEA/Ser.L/V/II, Doc.51, August 25, 2005. Para. 53. 18