Worrying surge in bills aiming to remove women’s legal rights in Latin America and Caribbean countries  

Photo credit: Jacqueline Staforelli (Creative Commons)

By Ana Elena Obando, Legal Advisor of Equality Now for Latin America and the Caribbean, and Milena Páramo Bernal, Regional Coordinator of CLADEM

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Santiago de Chile, August 4, 2024: In recent years, the hard-won legal rights of women, adolescents and girls in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) have come increasingly under attack. In a region with some of the highest rates of gender-based violence and femicides globally, regressive forces are pushing for legislative changes that erode women’s legal protections and cut essential funding. Simultaneously, attempts to introduce laws that restrict women’s autonomy and curtail their access to justice threaten to undermine decades of progress toward advancing gender equality.

Thirty years of the Belém do Pará Convention

Amid this concerning landscape, the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence Against Women is a powerful tool to counter attempts to roll back on women’s rights. Adopted in 1994, the Belém do Pará Convention, as it is more widely known, is a comprehensive regional treaty that recognizes violence against women as a violation of human rights and sets out States’ obligations to act with due diligence to prevent, investigate, and punish acts of violence against women.

By adopting this binding treaty, countries commit to developing laws, policies, and measures to achieve the Convention’s objectives, with the establishment of judicial and administrative mechanisms to ensure access to justice and reparation for survivors of violence.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of this landmark treaty. Out of the 34 full Member States of the Organization of American States (OAS), only Canada and the U.S.A. have yet to ratify it. 

With women’s rights increasing at risk from the rise of ultra-conservative movements, it is vital that all governments in LAC reaffirm their commitment to this binding treaty. Full implementation involves not only upholding existing legal protections but also strengthening the law to ensure comprehensive support for survivors and robust accountability for perpetrators. 

Women’s rights are at risk in numerous countries

The growth of ultra-conservative movements and the coordinated actions of anti-rights groups have enabled them to gain influence and political power, endangering already agreed-upon rights in LAC. Conservative political factions and religious organizations with political and public influence have used harmful rhetoric to advocate for policies that reinforce traditional gender roles and oppose gender equality measures and the sexual diversity movement, particularly targeting minorities. 

In Bolivia, the Law to Guarantee Women a Life Free of Violence (Law 348) is at risk from a bill submitted by a senator from the pro-government Movement Towards Socialism (MAS). Proposed reforms to Law 348 include requiring an alleged victim of sexual violence to give their testimony in a room with a one-way mirror, with an expert and prosecutor observing and then judging the truthfulness of the person’s testimony. The case would also have to be corroborated by “other means of proof.”

Senators speaking in support of the bill incorrectly claim the majority of sexual violence complaints are fabricated, and that Law 348 is “anti-men” and “divides families.” Serious concerns have been raised by women’s rights defenders about how the bill would undermine the law’s effectiveness and would be a major setback in access to justice for sexual violence survivors, who would face re-victimization.

Representatives of the legislative branch in Uruguay introduced a bill this year to amend the Law on Gender-Based Violence Against Women (Law 19.580). Those advocating for the bill argue they want to avoid “false denunciations” and say the existing law undermines the principle of innocence until proven guilty and the right to due process. They claim there is too much reliance on the alleged victim’s testimony, and precautionary measures involving legal actions or restrictions imposed on the alleged aggressor during the investigation and legal proceedings are excessively harsh.

It is alarming that one of the bill’s proposed amendments specifies: “Silence, lack of resistance, or the victim’s prior or subsequent sexual history in a sexual assault case will be prudently analyzed.” This provision directly contradicts internationally agreed-upon legal standards regarding consent in sexual violence cases.

In June, far-right politicians in Brazil’s conservative-majority Congress attempted to fast-track legislation seeking to equate abortion after 22 weeks of pregnancy to homicide and establish prison sentences of six to 20 years. 

Labeled the ‘Rape Bill,’ it would be applicable in cases where abortion is currently permitted, such as when the pregnancy is the result of rape, or when the mother’s life is at risk. Meanwhile, the crime of rape has a lesser prison sentence of 6 to 10 years. Following widespread public protest, debate on the bill has been postponed until August.

Meanwhile, in Argentina, under the new government of Javier Milei, women’s rights are being undermined on multiple fronts. This includes the abolition of the Ministry of Women and severe budget cuts to gender-based violence policies, significantly hampering the State’s capacity to safeguard women.

In the Dominican Republic, the Senate is nearing the approval of a highly controversial bill for a new Penal Code. This bill, which passed its first reading on June 26, continues to enforce the country’s total ban on abortion. Additionally, it lowers penalties for marital sexual violence, labeling it as ‘non-consensual sexual activity.’ The criminalization of abortion is incompatible with the Dominican Republic’s international human rights obligations.

The Dominican Republic is one of five countries in Latin America and the Caribbean that imposes a complete abortion ban, criminalizing women and girls who seek abortions and those who assist them. For decades, women’s rights organizations have been advocating for safe and legal access to abortion.

These egregious examples directly contravene the legal obligations of LAC States under the Convention, which establishes that they cannot backtrack on the progress made to ensure women’s right to live free from violence.

Full implementation of the Belém do Pará Convention is urgent

Guided by the Convention, LAC countries have implemented a range of progressive laws and programs, and harnessed institutions to address violence against women. This was discussed during the IX Conference of States Parties in June 2024, when government and UN representatives, policymakers, and civil society came together to celebrate the Convention’s anniversary and take stock of achievements and challenges.

While commemorating this milestone 30th anniversary, it is important to acknowledge what has hindered advancement and facilitated backsliding. The reality is that despite commendable advances, the magnitude of violence against women and girls remains devastating. The widespread prevalence of femicide, sexual violence, trafficking, and sexual exploitation are some of the distressing indicators of this reality.

Feminist and women’s organizations will continue to resist the conservative wave threatening human rights. Legislators and policymakers must play their part in robustly resisting regressive efforts to repeal protective laws, defund gender gap policies, dismantle national gender equality mechanisms, and undermine States’ international commitments to uphold women’s rights.

Centering the Belém do Pará Convention as a cornerstone of States’ policy agendas and ensuring the Convention’s immediate and full implementation is crucial to enabling women and girls across LAC to enjoy their lives free from violence.

This article was originally published on El Desconcierto, in Spanish.