The case of a 10-year-old girl raped and impregnated by her stepfather has triggered outrage in Paraguay, where the health minister has blocked her from having an abortion.
The girl was admitted to hospital last month with what doctors suspected was a tumor. It turned out to be a baby, which tests revealed was fathered by her stepfather.
The girl’s mother has been arrested for helping her partner, Gilberto Benitez Zarate, flee from the authorities after his abuse came to light. Benitez, 42, is now the target of a massive manhunt.
Child sexual abuse is all too common in the South American country, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Wednesday said.
“In Paraguay, every day two girls between the ages of 10 and 14 give birth. These cases are a consequence of sexual abuse, and in most situations, repeated sexual abuse from which the victims have not received timely, appropriate protection,” UNICEF child protection officer Andrea Cid said.
“Adolescent girls are not receiving adequate attention. This is our concern and we hope that in light of this case effective measures will be taken to protect them from intra-family violence,” she said.
The case has also triggered new debate on abortion in Paraguay, where the constitution forbids it unless the mother’s life is in danger.
Paraguayan Minister of Health Antonio Barrios, a pediatrician, on Monday said it was out of the question to allow the girl to have an abortion because she was already in her 23rd week of pregnancy.
The head of the Clinical Hospital said the girl would give birth by caesarean to avoid complications. He said 14 girls between the ages of nine and 15 gave birth at the hospital last year, “and they all came out fine.”
A judge on Wednesday rejected a request by the girl’s mother to convene a team of medical experts to evaluate the possibility of an abortion.
Amnesty International’s local office has launched a social media campaign, “#NinaEnPeligro” (Girl in Danger), accusing authorities of violating the girl’s human rights by forcing her have the baby.
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