Document Type

Article

Comments

Presented as part of the Berger International Speaker Series at Cornell Law School on November 5, 2009. A related article is available online at: http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/facpub/22/.

Abstract

This presentation argues that the exclusion of enforced sterilization cases from the Peruvian Truth Commission's investigation and Final Report effectively erases State responsibility and decreases the likelihood for justice and reparations for women victims-survivors of State-sponsored violence in Peru. In a context of deep cultural and economic divides and violent conflict, this presentation recounts how the State's Family Planning Program violated Peruvian women's reproductive rights by sterilizing low-income, indigenous Quechua-speaking women without informed consent. This presentation argues that these systematic reproductive injustices constitute an act of genocide, proposes an independent inquiry, and advocates for a more inclusive investigation and final report for future truth commissions whose goals include truth, accountability, and justice for all victims-survivors of state-sponsored violence. Leaders responsible for the enforced sterilization of more than 200,000 Peruvian women, including former President Alberto Ken'ya Fujimori, must be held accountable for past violations in order to fully realize future reconciliation and justice in Peru.

Date of Authorship for this Version

11-5-2009

Keywords

Peru, Enforced sterilization, Reproductive rights, Peruvian Truth Commission

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