UN rights experts knock Paraguay over pregnant 10-year-old

Paraguay’s government has failed to protect a 10-year-old rape victim who is being denied an abortion, United Nations human rights experts said on Monday. In a statement released in Geneva, the four experts said Paraguay has refused to provide treatment to save the life of the girl, who is five months pregnant, The case has set off a national debate in Paraguay where abortion is banned in all cases — even rape — except when the mother’s life is in danger.

The aftermath of rape could remain when she becomes a teenager or an adult.

Paraguayan forensic psychologist Franca La Carrubba

The girl’s mother is being held at a female prison for neglecting to take care of her daughter. About 600 girls 14 or under become pregnant each year in this country of 6.8 million people. Studies by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control say thousands of children in the United States also give birth each year. Amnesty International has asked authorities to allow an abortion to protect the girl. Health Minister Antonio Barrios has responded that she is in good health at a Red Cross hospital and that her pregnancy, at five months, is too advanced. But a medical panel was created on Monday to assess her mental and physical health. Experts say the girl isn’t ready mentally or physically to give birth.