The Public Prosecutor’s Office of Panama opened an investigation on Monday, February 21, into accusations of forced sterilization of indigenous women.
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“A special team of prosecutors has been formed“to investigate”possible non-consensual sterilization proceduresthe prosecution said in a statement. The team traveled to the province of Bocas del Toro, in the northwest of the country, however, they were unable to interview any possible victims as they have yet to obtain “approval from local (indigenous) authorities to accessto them, according to the prosecution. A team from the Office of the Ombudsman also traveled to Bocas del Toro on Monday, looking for statements from possible victims. “We have not been able to determine whether there are at least one, eight or tenvictims, Eduardo Leblanc, of the Office of the Mediator, told the press.
The Office of the Ombudsman said in a statement that it would continue to “gather information to get to the truthand announced that he would pay for transportation, accommodation and ultrasounds for Indigenous women who decide to officially denounce their case.
Sterilized in public hospitals
Last week, Walkiria Chandler, deputy member of the National Assembly, reported that a dozen indigenous women were allegedly sterilized in public hospitals without their consent. Several women had testified before a legislative commission which visited in October 2021 the locality of Charco La Pava, a mountainous area difficult to access where the indigenous Ngäbe-Buglé people live. Kayra Harding, a member of the National Assembly’s Committee on Women, Children, Youth and the Family, filed a complaint with the public prosecutor on Thursday (February 17) for these alleged acts. According to the statement, Kayra Harding said that during a discussion during a medical visit, “one of the women denounced the fact that they had been sterilized without their consent after giving birth“. The Panamanian government has also launched a parallel investigation.
In Peru, an estimated 270,000 women, mostly indigenous people who do not speak Spanish, have been forced to undergo tubal ligation for sterilization purposes under the National Reproductive Health Program and family planning implemented by former President Fujimori. The purpose of this program was to reduce the birth rate in Peru in order to promote economic growth.