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Forced sterilization of indigenous case re-opened in Peru

Indian Country Today
Rick Kearns

The investigation into the forced sterilization of 300,000 indigenous Peruvian women is being re-opened, according to the Public Ministry of Peru. This follow-up effort was announced Jan. 7 and will seek out the program’s administrators. It had been part of the larger case against former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori, who is facing other criminal counts.

Fujimori is awaiting the final disposition of his case in which he is being charged with kidnapping as well as ordering two massacres that resulted in the deaths of 25 people. If convicted he faces up to 30 years in prison. The original charges against him involved other human rights violations including his knowing supervision of the forced sterilization of indigenous women. The so-called “Voluntary Surgical Contraception” Program was enacted between 1997 and 2000.

After hundreds of women started registering complaints during that time period and international pressure started to mount, the Peruvian Congress convened their own investigation which showed that most of the women were tricked or forced into the procedure, and that at least two women died as a result of the operations. Peru’s Health Ministry issued a public apology to the country in 2002 – after the case had received international attention – at which point investigators were asserting that former President Fujimori knew about the coercion and threats.

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# jb says :
24 February, 2009 [ 09:28 ]

The "means to the end" are what are in question and it is unfortunate if true.  There can be no doubt that the severe poverty in Peru is directly related to having too many children with no means of support. There needs to be more emphansis on educating young poor women of their options. 

# rice and sugar says :
24 February, 2009 [ 11:53 ]

Guilty are those unqualified "nurses" and fake doctors who did this. I saw it myself, I remember those idiots who called themselves "nurses" - could not even administer shots...assassins..but these were not necessarily sent by Fujimori. Fujimori's fight against poverty aimed to reduce the number of children who eat in garbage piles...IT is not Fujimori's fault that some Peruvian "professionals" are incompetent and evil. Furthermore, this was a dirty political trick to make Fujimori's plan a failure. They won: now Fujimori is in jail and those little kids continue to be born in poverty.
Just imagine having to live by the following rules:
1) Eat from a garbage pile: Look for the bones. Avoid the smelly diapers.
2) Sleep in the park. Use a plastic bag for covers.
3) Some children sell their innocent bodies to some "adults": remember they may give you a piece of bread tomorrow.
4) Steal money from that rich tourist walking down the street
5) Don't worry about dying of malnourishment.
6) Fujimori is in jail: justice has been made. Who is hungry? I am not hungry. I forgot what hunger is.

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