Ecuador And Nicaragua: Forced Pregnancy And Motherhood Violated Rights Of Girl Victims Of Rape

GENEVA (20 January 2025) – By forcing girls victims of rape to carry their pregnancies to term and to raise children born out of rape, Ecuador and Nicaragua violated the victims’ right to live with dignity and subjected them to situations amounting to torture, the UN Human Rights Committee has found.

The Committee published its Decisions today on one case against Ecuador and two against Nicaragua involving girls aged between 12 and 13 years old when they were pregnant.

“Forcing girls who were victims of rape to endure unwanted pregnancies is more than a denial of choice; it is a violation of life with dignity, an act amounting to torture, and a failure to protect some of the most vulnerable,” said Committee member Hélène Tigroudja.

Norma* from Ecuador was 13 when she became pregnant as a result of incest perpetrated by her father, who had previously raped other girls in the family and had been reported to the authorities for those offences. In Ecuador, access to therapeutic abortion is almost impossible in practice, despite the legal availability of such abortion to protect pregnant women’s lives and health. Norma was forced to carry her pregnancy to term and give birth to a child born out of incest. Despite her clear and expressed willingness to give up her child to be raised by family members, she was misinformed about adoption options and ended up being forced to raise the child in poverty and without access to education.

Susana* in Nicaragua was abandoned by her birth mother when she was 1 year old and sent to live with her grandparents. She was kept in isolation, forced to work and denied access to basic education. She was six years old when her grandfather started sexually abusing her. She had been regularly raped and abused by her grandfather before becoming pregnant at the age of 12. Her grandmother had attempted, without success, to obtain protection and support for her from the authorities. In Nicaragua, abortion is totally banned and criminalized for both pregnant women and healthcare personnel. A day after the baby was born, Susana lodged a criminal complaint and requested protection from her abusive grandfather. After an arrest warrant was issued, the authorities informed Susana that they could neither enforce the warrant nor offer her other safety guarantees because her grandfather was part of an armed group that controlled the area. Susana was not provided with any other option but to keep the child, who is now being raised by her grandmother.

Lucía*, also from Nicaragua, was only 13 years old when the priest of her community started raping and forcing her to take emergency contraception pills. After several months of sexual abuse, Lucía got pregnant. Despite deep depression, she continued her studies in secondary school with her parents’ support and filed a criminal case against the priest. She and her family were threatened to drop the charges due to the social and religious standing of the perpetrator, but they resisted. The authorities took no action against the priest despite the criminal charges brought against him. Like in the case of Susana, Lucía could not access abortion and ended up being forced to carry her pregnancy to term. During the delivery, she was subjected to psychological and physical abuse and mistreatment by medical personnel, resulting in revictimization. Lucía’s child is now being raised by her parents.

As it was impossible to obtain justice and effective remedies in Ecuador and Nicaragua, the three girls brought their cases to the Committee, claiming their rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) were violated.

Since neither Ecuador nor Nicaragua had investigated these rape cases or taken action to bring the three perpetrators to justice, the Committee considered the lack of action as “an omission on the part of the State party, in relation to its obligation to exercise a reinforced duty of protection in the case of a child victim of violence”.

The Committee stated that the right to life, under Article 6 of the ICCPR, cannot be properly understood if it is interpreted restrictively. “The right to life also refers to the right to enjoy a life in dignity. States parties should take all measures to address societal conditions that may threaten the right to life or prevent individuals from enjoying their right to life with dignity, in particular in cases of children,” said Tigroudja, recalling the Committee’s General Comment 36 that defines and clarifies the right to life.

The protection of this right requires States to adopt positive measures. “In these terrible cases, violations by omission also include the failure to take the necessary measures to achieve the full realization of the right of these girls to sexual and reproductive health, as well as the failure to enact and enforce relevant laws,” Tigroudja added.

The Committee thus concluded that both States parties had violated the victims’ right to life under Article 6 of the ICCPR.

The Committee also found that both Ecuador and Nicaragua had violated Article 7 of the ICCPR, which prohibits torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment as the Covenant refers not only to physical pain but also to moral suffering.

“All three girls suffered a high level of distress caused by sexual abuse, unwanted pregnancy, particularly at this young age, stigma within the community and the emotional and financial burden of raising a child born out of rape in a situation of poverty. For the Committee, the forced pregnancies led to forced motherhood and are rooted in structural and intersected discrimination suffered by the three young survivors,” Tigroudja said.

The Committee highlighted the absolute necessities to combat sexual violence, to provide girls with sexual and reproductive health education necessary to identify sexual violence and pregnancies, and to ensure that all girls victims of sexual violence have effective access to abortion services.

The Committee also requested that the State parties take measures to remedy the damage incurred by the forced pregnancies and forced motherhood on Norma, Susana and Lucía’s life plans, as well as to guarantee access to education and psychological care for the children born out of rape.

Full Decisions of the three cases are now available online
Norma v Ecuador
Susana v Nicaragua
Lucía v Nicaragua

* Pseudonym to protect the identity of the victims

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