Peru marks International Women’s Day with setbacks in the rights of girls and women

Within the context of March 8, recent political decisions and judicial rulings have reignited the debate over the effective protection of the autonomy and dignity of girls and women in the country.

Susana Reina
March 8, 2026

Recently, Peru has raised alarms across the region due to a convergence of political and judicial decisions that call into question the most basic rights of girls and women. On the eve of International Women’s Day, the outlook is particularly troubling: from the obstruction of access to legal abortion in cases of rape, to the judicial recognition of reproductive practices without clear regulation, all amid persistent physical violence and educational exclusion.

After years of political instability, successive presidential changes, and a deep crisis of representation, the current Congress has become a setting where conservative agendas have gained decisive influence. In this climate of institutional fragmentation and the weakening of public debate, policies related to gender and reproductive rights have become fertile ground for polarization.

Continued: https://latinoamerica21.com/en/peru-marks-international-womens-day-with-setbacks-in-the-rights-of-girls-and-women/

08.03.2026

International Woman's Day

Peru’s gender-based violence crisis requires structural solutions

Ben Radford, Cali
March 22, 2025

Women in Peru face one of the highest levels of gender-based violence in Latin America, along with structural barriers to accessing vital healthcare such as abortion and contraception.

The Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations (MIMP) recorded 71,717 cases of psychological violence, 63,692 cases of physical violence and 12,524 cases of sexual assault against women last year — but the actual number is much higher due to underreporting.

Continued: https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/perus-gender-based-violence-crisis-requires-structural-solutions

22.03.2025

Commentary

Ben Radford

femicide

gender-based violence

Latin American Network of Women Defenders of Social and Environmental Rights

Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations

Peruvians take to the streets to demand abortion rights

Ben Radford
September 30, 2024

Thousands rallied across Peru for International Safe Abortion Day on September 28, demanding the right to safe, accessible abortions. Hundreds marched through the capital, Lima, under the banner of “The Right to Decide”.

Abortion is illegal in Peru, even in cases of rape. While abortion is technically allowed in cases where the pregnant person’s health or life is at risk, in practice it is difficult to access a safe abortion.

Continued: https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/peruvians-take-streets-demand-abortion-rights

30.09.2024

News

Centre for the Promotion and Defence of Sexual and Reproductive Rights

Elga Prado

International Safe Abortion Day

Movimiento Manuela Ramos

The UN Urged Peru To Relax Its Abortion Stance. Lawmakers Did the Opposite

Across Latin America, a backlash against women’s rights is underway and girls are criminalized for miscarrying

Harriet Barber
June 6, 2024

Camila’s body folds in on itself, eyes fixated on the cuffs of her sweater and thick black hair shielding her face. The 19-year-old, an Indigenous teenager from the Peruvian mountains, sits close to her lawyer, arms touching, in a small office overlooking Lima’s skyline. In clipped and hushed sentences, she begins her story.

At the age of 9, Camila was raped by her father. He ordered her not to tell anyone, threatening to kill her and her mother and brother if she did. For a while, his threats worked and she stayed silent. His vicious assault was the start of years of violence, abuse that would make Camila pregnant at the age of 13 and leave her ostracized from her community.

Continued: https://newlinesmag.com/reportage/the-un-urged-peru-to-relax-its-abortion-stance-lawmakers-did-the-opposite/

06.06.2024

Commentary

40 days for life

American Convention on Human Rights

Camila in Peru

Camila v. Peru

Center for the Promotion and Defence of Sexual and Reproductive Rights

Committee on the Rights of the Child

Diana Aleman

Elga Prado

fetal personhood laws

Manuela Ramos Movement

menstrual regulation

Milagros Jauregui Martinez de Aguayo

Paula Avila-Guillen

Peruvian Institute for Responsible Parenthood

U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child

Women's Equality Center

Peru allows abortion of 11-year-old rape victim after UN pressure

Reuters
August 17, 2023

LIMA - An 11-year-old rape victim was allowed an abortion in Peru over the weekend after being initially refused the procedure, in a case that rights groups say highlights the lack of support for minors who suffer sexual abuse.

The girl, publicly identified only as "Mila," was raped for years by her stepfather, according to a police report. Earlier this month, Mila - approaching 18 weeks pregnant - was turned away at a hospital in the Amazon region of Loreto, which refused to perform the abortion.

Continued: https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/peru-allows-abortion-11-year-old-rape-victim-after-un-pressure-2023-08-16/

17.08.2023

Pregnant 11-year-old girl denied abortion after stepfather viciously raped her

The Peruvian child's advocates are currently fighting the decision, which included separating her from her mother. The case highlights Peru's problem with sexual violence and underage pregnancy among girls.

By JACOB KESSLER
Sat, Aug 12, 2023

Recent tragedies in Peru have brought the issue of denying abortion to child rape victims into the global spotlight. The United Nations, concerned about the violation of children's rights, has called for a reevaluation of the country's approach to such cases.

In a significant ruling issued by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in mid-June, the Peruvian state was found to have violated the rights of a 13-year-old indigenous girl named Camila (pseudonym).

Continued: https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1801582/peru-pregnant-girl-abortion-rape

12.08.2023

News

Camila in Peru

Center for the Promotion and Defense of Sexual and Reproductive Rights

Mila in Peru

Promsex

rape and abortion

UN Committee on the Rights of the Child

Peru denies abortion to girl raped by her stepfather

The United Nations have called on the government to reconsider the case of the 11-year-old, which comes just two months after a 13-year-old rape victim was also prevented from ending her pregnancy

Renzo Gómez Vega
AUG 10, 2023

In mid-June, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) issued a historic ruling: it found that the Peruvian state violated the rights of a 13-year-old indigenous girl called Camila (pseudonym), who was the victim of incest and rape, by not providing her with information on or access to legal and safe abortion. In the resolution, the CRC urged Peru to decriminalize abortion in all cases of child pregnancy and to amend the regulations governing access to therapeutic abortion to provide for its specific application to girls. It also called for the creation of a cross-cutting mechanism to ensure that victims are not retraumatized. Two months later, a very similar case shows that the Peruvian government has not heeded these calls.

In this new case, the girl in question is 11 years old and is called Mila — not only to protect her identity, but also to make it clear that her rights have been violated just like Camila’s. Mila comes from a humble area of Iquitos, the capital of the department of Loreto, which is a gateway to the Amazon Rainforest. She has been systematically abused by her stepfather since she was six, and a month ago, she found out that she was 13 weeks pregnant.

Continued: https://english.elpais.com/international/2023-08-10/peru-denies-abortion-to-girl-raped-by-her-stepfather.html

Peru Should Provide Comprehensive Reproductive Care for Girls

UN Committee Finds Peru Violated Girl’s Human Rights, Urges Abortion Reform

Cristina Quijano Carrasco, Researcher, Women's Rights
June 20, 2023

When Camila (a pseudonym), an Indigenous girl in rural Peru, was 13, she became pregnant after years of rape by her father. Authorities denied her request for an abortion, even though the pregnancy posed serious risks to her life and health. Later, when Camila had a miscarriage and sought emergency health care, authorities prosecuted her – and forced her through a traumatizing court process.

Abortions in Peru are punishable by up to two years in prison, except when the life or health of the woman, girl, or pregnant person is in danger. Camila’s case fit this exception for what are known as “therapeutic abortions.” Even so, she was convicted in 2018 and only acquitted on appeal a year later.

Continued: https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/20/peru-should-provide-comprehensive-reproductive-care-girls

20.06.2023

Commentary

#NiñasNoMadres

Camila of Peru

Cristina Quijano Carrasco

Human Rights Watch

Promsex

UN Committee on the Rights of the Child

Girl raped by father should have received abortion access, U.N. tells Peru

By Adam Schrader
June 18, 2023

A young girl who was raped by her father and became pregnant should have received abortion information and access, a United Nations committee told Peru last week.

The girl, identified by the pseudonym Camila, was first raped by her father when she was 9 years old and was continuously abused until she became pregnant in 2017 at the age of 13, the U.N. Child Rights Committee said in a statement.

Continued: https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2023/06/18/peru-girl-raped-by-father-abortion-access-united-nations/6581687107956/

18.06.2023

News

Camila in Peru

Guillermo Díaz de la Vega Hospital

rape and abortion

UN Child Rights Convention

UN Committee on the Rights of the Child

Peru violated child rape victim’s rights by failing to guarantee access to abortion and criminally prosecuting her for self-abortion, UN Committee finds

13 June 2023

GENEVA – The UN Child Rights Committee found that Peru has violated the rights to health and life of an indigenous and rural girl victim of rape by failing to provide her with information and access to legal and safe abortion.

The Committee published its decision today after hearing the complaints filed by Camila (pseudonym), who was raped by her father from age nine until she became pregnant at age 13.

Continued: https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/06/peru-violated-child-rape-victims-rights-failing-guarantee-access-abortion

13.06.2023