The case of an 11-year-old girl raped who interrupted an abortion process due to the intervention of the Catholic Church and generates debate in Bolivia

Shock, sadness, anger and outrage.

These are some of the feelings that have arisen in some sectors of Bolivian society as a result of the case of a 11 year old girl that she became pregnant due to continued sexual abuse by a 60-year-old man.

“Girls, not mothers” and “Save both lives”Are some of the slogans that have been used in recent days, both on social networks and in demonstrations in the streets, those who defend that the minor can interrupt her pregnancy protected by law and those who believe that the pregnancy should follow its course.

The case, which happened in the municipality of Yapacaní —In the department of Santa Cruz, in the east of the country—, it has had a strong impact on all Bolivia in the last week.

Raped for months

For more than five months, the girl was the victim of sexual abuse by the father of his mother’s current partner. The pregnancy was discovered after the minor “feel strange movements”In her womb and she will tell her relatives. After a first medical check-up, it was revealed that he had 21 weeks of gestation.

An aunt of the little girl filed a complaint against the alleged aggressor, who is awaiting legal proceedings in a maximum security prison.

At the same time, an application for the legal interruption of pregnancy (ILE) was submitted for the girl.

In Bolivia, since 2014, thanks to a constitutional ruling, a woman can access a abortion legal and safe in cases where the pregnancy is product of rape, incest, rape (when the victim is a minor) or if your life or health is in danger as a result of pregnancy.

It is only necessary to file a complaint of rape and the consent of the victim, eliminating the requirement of a judicial authorization that appears in the Bolivian Penal Code for the performance of a non-punishable abortion.

The girl’s ILE began last Friday. According to the Casa de la Mujer, an institution that supported the Yapacaní Children’s Ombudsman at the beginning of the case, the little girl received a first medication to interrupt the pregnancy.

But after the media coverage of the case, which different sectors attribute to coverage “irresponsible”By the local media since the child’s privacy was not respected, the Catholic Church and groups called “pro-life” exerted pressure on the girl and her mother to change their minds and desist from continuing with the interruption of the pregnancy, according to the Bolivian Ombudsman, Nadia Cruz, told BBC Mundo.

On Saturday October 23, with a handwritten letter signed by her, the girl gave up on continuing with the termination of pregnancy.

She was discharged from the hospital last Tuesday and went, together with her mother, to a reception center run by the Catholic Church, an institution that He promised to take care of the minor and her unborn.

Nadia Cruz considers that the mother should not have a voice in the decision-making in this case, since the sexual abuse occurred while the little girl was in “absolute loneliness and defenselessness.”

“According to the reports we accessed, the way in which she was pressured and cornered by members of the Church, who have identified themselves as the Archbishopric, has generated doubts and fear in the minor so that she backs down in her decision to interrupt legally pregnancy”, Assures the Ombudsman.

“ELla decided to do an ILE taking into account her life project. She herself pointed out ‘I want to study, I want a life for myself’. The other two forms of intervention [de la madre y de la Iglesia] are part of the serious violation of rights of which the minor has been a victim”Says Cruz.

“To the limit of the legislation”

According to data released by the director of the House of Women, Ana Paola García, in 2020 39,999 pregnancies of children under 18 years of age were reported in Bolivia, which means that on average 104 girls become pregnant per day in the country, from of which 6 are under 13 years of age.

From the legal advice office of the Municipal Secretariat for Human Development of Santa Cruz, in charge of the Ombudsman for Children and Adolescents of the same municipality, they explain to BBC Mundo that it is a case that is “to the limit of the legislation”.

Although the 2014 constitutional ruling does not specify a time limit for the termination of pregnancy, the Bolivian Ministry of Health regulates this aspect based on what the World Health Organization says, which establishes the limit of viability of the fetus in the 22 weeks for termination of pregnancy.

In this case, say the same sources, the girl is at the time limit and they point out that when a doctor diagnoses the time of pregnancy “there is always a margin of error”.

Likewise, they point out that although the girl’s case meets three of the causes typified in the constitutional ruling, the process of interrupting the pregnancy should be carried out within 24 hours. In addition, they put the decision of an 11-year-old girl is questioned, since that age, they affirm from the legal instance, they do not have the capacity or to make the slightest contract before any institution.

Faced with this scenario, they see a “legal contradiction” in the capacity granted by the 2014 sentence: “He is being given the power to make a decision to kill or not to kill a being with only 11 years old “.

“No one else can decide on herNot the State, not a hospital, not a committee of doctors, not the Catholic Church. We put this legal capacity into question because it is a girl, but the doctrine says that she has the right to decide and has decided to continue with the pregnancy”, They add from the office of legal advice of the municipality of Santa Cruz.

Risk pregnancy

The position of the Bolivian Church has been, since the case was made known, that of “save, care for and lovingly support both lives”. In a statement, ecclesiastical sources affirmed that “it is already a well-formed creature and therefore enjoys, without a doubt, the protection that emanates from the laws and the Political Constitution of the State.”

“A “crime is not solved with another crime. Abortion does not remedy rape, nor does it give peace of mind to consciences. On the contrary, it leaves more serious psychological wounds and for a long time.”They added.

Iblin Moscoso, obstetrician and gynecologist at the CIES clinic in Santa Cruz, assures in conversation with BBC Mundo that from a medical point of view, this girl’s “it is a very high risk pregnancy” for all the complications it may have.

The minor began the process of terminating her pregnancy by taking a pill. However, the specialist states that multiple doses are needed to achieve the effect of expulsion and then do a manual vacuum aspiration.

“With just one dose we did not get an answer. Now, whether that may have consequences later or may have some delayed effect, will depend on the response of the girl’s body.”, Says the doctor.

The doctor who works in a clinic that aims to contribute to the exercise of sexual and reproductive rights, says that during the pregnancy of a girl as young as 11 years old, there may be complications such as preeclampsia (characterized by high blood pressure and signs of damage to another organ system, most often the liver and kidneys), a premature labor, malnutrition or risk of a hemorrhage during childbirth or postpartum, “because your body is not ready.”

“If we talk about the psychological part, it is much more complicated due to the implication it has. The girl is not going to be ready to be a mother. You may not be able to accept this baby after it is born, not only because you have become pregnant at an age when you are not ready to be a mother, but also because it is the result of rape.”, Adds the specialist.

Moscoso considers that the legal interruption of pregnancy in Bolivia continues to be an obstacle the fear of some doctors to apply the constitutional sentence due to the social pressure they feel. “As long as the cases are not handled with the confidentiality that is needed, both for the patient and for the personnel who will participate in an intervention, the doctors will not be able to act without fear of being judged by society”Adds Moscoso.

A report prepared by the Ombudsman’s Office with the support of Ipas Bolivia, reveals that only 8% of 277 health providers In 44 centers nationwide that were consulted, he knew in which cases the Legal Interruption of Pregnancy proceeds, which results in violations of the rights of women, girls and adolescents.

The document, published in September of last year, ensures that users who go to a health facility in a state of pregnancy as a result of rape and request the legal interruption of pregnancy, are repeatedly subjected to questioning by the staff doctor about your decision.

“It was identified that, in most cases, health personnel tries to persuade them to continue with an unwanted pregnancy or is denied the right to terminate it, situations that cause anguish, pain, suffering and re-victimization in women, girls or adolescents who are victims of rape “, says the report.

This week, representatives of the United Nations (UN) in Bolivia spoke about this case, noting that subject a girl to a forced pregnancy “is qualified as torture”.

“The pregnancy of a girl not only puts her life, health and life project at risk, but also threatens her mental and emotional health, her bodily autonomy, encouraging and reinforcing inequalities, the cycle of poverty and discrimination“Said the UN in a statement.