Lima, Peru — The Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruled and ordered Peru to pay compensation for the death of a mother of three who died in 1997 as part of a forced sterilization program under the late Alberto Fujimori administration.
Latin America’s highest tribunal issued a landmark ruling Thursday on forced sterilizations in Peru, a policy that systematically targets poor and indigenous women.
The court revealed that Celia Ramos was only 34 years old when she died, leaving behind three daughters in her Andean village. Her death in 1997 followed a harrowing experience at a state health center where, instead of getting the care she wanted, she was forced into intubation. The procedure was carried out under conditions of neglect, lacking proper equipment and drugs needed to manage complications.
Ramos suffered a severe allergic reaction during the surgery but was not moved to intensive care for another half hour. She died 19 days later, on July 22, 1997. The state then bypassed a formal autopsy and left her family in the dark without providing a clear explanation for her sudden demise, the court said.
As part of the ruling, the court ordered Peru to pay approximately $340,000 to the Ramos family. This includes reimbursement for medical expenses incurred during an attempt to save her life in 1997, as well as compensation for the loss of income she earned during her productive years.
Peru’s Justice Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday from The Associated Press.
In August 2024, the Peruvian justice system overturned the criminal indictment against Fujimori in the forced sterilization case, rejecting the prosecution’s appeal. After Fujimori’s death in 2024, the process returned to the formal complaint stage. Now the focus has shifted to determining the criminal responsibility of other high-ranking former officials, including several former health ministers.
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