This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Paraguay’s government has been advised to take “precautionary measures” to ensure the health of a 10-year-old girl who is pregnant after allegedly being raped by her stepfather.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights recommended an intervention with a report suggesting the girl – known only as Mainumby – is four times more likely to die from childbirth than an adult woman.

Although it did not use the word “abortion”, the commission’s declaration adds to the growing pressure on the authorities in this predominantly Catholic country to allow the girl to terminate the pregnancy.

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Paraguayan law prohibits abortions except in cases where the mother’s life is in immediate danger, and health authorities in the country have refused to terminate the girl’s pregnancy.

But doctors and women’s rights activists have argued that potential hazards for very young mothers are considerable – a risk that is clearly spelled out in the IACHR’s report.

The commission, which is a body within the Organisation of American States, warned that giving birth at such a young age could violate the right to life of Mainumby, as well as threatening her physical and psychological wellbeing.

Citing earlier studies, it noted that the girl is already suffering from malnutrition and anaemia and now faces a 60% higher risk than normal of post-natal bleeding as well as eclampsia, infections and damage to her reproductive system.

Mainumby’s case has prompted a national debate in Paraguay about abortion and the prevalence of underage childbirth. There is also a growing international clamour for the authorities to do more to protect the child.

Last month, United Nations human rights officials said the government is wrong to deny the option of a “safe and therapeutic abortion”.

The global online campaigning organisation Avaaz has collected half a million signatures in a petition calling for the decriminalisation of abortion for women under 15 years of age. Several NGOs, including Amnesty and Equality Now, have issued appeals for Mainumby to be allowed an abortion.

“The government of Paraguay has disregarded the outcry of voices around the world calling for potentially life-saving care for this young rape survivor. It must not ignore the orders of the Inter-American Commission,” said Lilian Sepúlveda, vice-president of the Global Legal Program at the Center for Reproductive Rights. “Denying a young girl essential medical care is nothing short of cruel and inhumane treatment, and a gross violation of her fundamental human rights.”

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But medical authorities in Paraguay insist the girl will have to give birth unless there are complications that put her life at risk. Now five months into the pregnancy, local doctors say a premature cesarean birth is under consideration.