Perus human rights court awards reparations to victims of forced sterilization

Peru Ordered to Pay $340,000 in Reparations for Forced Sterilization Case

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has ruled that Peru must pay reparations to the family of Celia Ramos, a 34-year-old woman who died as a result of forced sterilization. The court’s decision states that Ramos was coerced into undergoing tubal ligation without her consent, leading to a severe allergic reaction that caused her death.

The Peruvian government had failed to conduct a thorough investigation into Ramos’s case, according to the court. As a result, her family suffered significant harm. The IACHR has ordered Peru to pay $340,000 in reparations to Ramos’s family, which includes reimbursement for medical procedures conducted to save her life and estimated loss of income from her death.

The ruling marks the first time the human rights court has addressed this issue. Peru’s campaign of forced sterilization took place during the late President Alberto Fujimori’s tenure, targeting poor and Indigenous women who were often tricked or coerced into undergoing sterilization procedures. The scheme resulted in the sterilization of up to 314,000 women and 24,000 men against their will.

The court’s decision acknowledges that Ramos’s family members suffered profound harm as a result of her death and the impunity surrounding the case. The ruling also notes that the Peruvian government failed to provide adequate medical facilities or trained personnel at clinics where sterilization procedures were performed.

This week’s ruling comes after years of legal contestation in Peru. In October 2024, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at the United Nations ruled that Peru’s sterilization program amounted to sex-based violence and discrimination against poor, rural, and Indigenous women.

Source: Al Jazeera