10-year-old pregnant girl raped by stepfather refused abortion in Paraguay

A ten-year-old girl in Paraguay who fell pregnant after allegedly being raped by her stepfather has been refused an abortion.

The girl was taken to hospital by her mother after complaining about stomach cramps, and doctors found that she was 21 weeks pregnant.

Termination is illegal in Paraguay, even in cases of incest and rape, and the girl has instead been moved to a 'young mothers' home', and her mother arrested over the alleged rape.

Amnesty International is now calling on Paraguay's government to allow the girl to get an abortion for the sake of her health.

'The physical and psychological impact of forcing this young girl to continue with an unwanted pregnancy is tantamount to torture,' Guadalupe Marengo, Americas Deputy Director at Amnesty International, said.

'The Paraguayan authorities cannot sit idly by while this young rape-survivor is forced to endure more agony and torment.

'Forcing this child to carry a baby to term, against her will, could have devastating health consequences.' 

The ten-year-old allegedly fell pregnant after her stepfather raped her. He has since fled and is being hunted by police.

On Tuesday, her mother petitioned the hospital to allow the child to undergo an abortion, but as termination is illegal even in cases of rape and incest, she was refused.

Instead, the mother has been arrested by police, and is currently in custody facing charges of breaching duty of care and being an accomplice of sexual abuse. 

According to Amnesty International, the girl has been admitted to a local Red Cross hospital after doctors acknowledged that her pregnancy is high risk. 

Rosalia Vega, director of the international rights group in Asuncion, said yesterday that a request to make an exception to the law and allow the girl to have an abortion has been made to the Health Ministry and Justice Department. 

'It is heart breaking to think of the horrifying ordeal this ten-year-old child has already suffered, to force her to continue with this unwanted pregnancy would be a further violation of her rights and will only prolong the horror,' Ms Marengo added.

According to health statistics, 680 Paraguayan girls aged between ten and 14 gave birth in 2014.