Archive for the ‘Women’ Category
Wednesday, February 13th, 2008
A state prosecutor fighting reassignment to a jungle post for fear of reprisals from one of Peru’s most notorious drug barons has suffered another legal setback.
Judge Teresa Jara García rejected a habeas corpus appeal by prosecutor Luz Loayza against Attorney General Adelaida Bolívar and members of Supreme Court of Prosecutors, according to daily El Comercio.
Loayza was appealing orders from the attorney general and the Supreme Court that she return to her post in the jungle city of Iquitos, where Loayza says her life would be in danger jailed cocaine kingpin Fernando Zevallos. Jara said she made the decision last Friday however would not provide more information. (more…)
Posted in Cocaine, Criminal Justice, Politics, Women | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 5th, 2008
State prosecutor Luz Loayza’s lawyer said he will appeal a decision by Peru’s Supreme Council of Prosecutors ordering Loayza’s return to her post in the city of Iquitos, where she would be at the mercy of drug traffickers. Aníbal Quiroga told daily La República they will appeal the decision in the judiciary and are prepared to bring the case to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights with support from the Lima Bar Association.
In November 2005, Loayza, 47, brought charges against Peru’s cocaine kingpin, Fernando Zevallos, who is currently serving a 20 year sentence for money laundering and drug trafficking. She reportedly received numerous death threats and escaped an assassination attempt in Iquitos during the year and a half trial against Zevallos.
Loayza has argued her life would be at risk if she returns to her post in the jungle city, capital of Loreto department, where drug traffickers have promised revenge.
However, the Supreme Council ordered Loayza’s return to Iquitos on Friday, arguing she failed to report death threats to her superiors. According to daily El Comercio, the Supreme Council echoed earlier comments by Attorney General Adelaida Bolívar saying prosecutors are inherently at risk. (more…)
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Monday, January 14th, 2008
Economist Alejandro Arrieta Herrera announced today that unnecessary cesarean sections in Peru’s private clinics have created a surcharge of $6.7 million annually. Arrieta, who is a fellow at the Institute for Health at Rutgers University, added that employers and independent users of private health insurance are compensating for the surcharge by paying overpriced premiums.
According to Agencia Andina, Arrieta said 50 percent of births in private clinics are cesarean. However the rate jumps to 70 percent when the women have private health insurance. The World Health Organization has reportedly said that no country should have a cesarean rate above 15 percent.
A cesarean can be a lifesaving operation for both mothers and baby’s when necessary, says the California-based International Cesarean Awareness Network, ICAN. However, they can also “double a woman’s rate of hysterectomy, blood transfusion, admission to intensive care, prolonged hospital stay and death, compared to mothers who delivered vaginally.” The ICAN adds that babies born by cesarean are 41 percent more likely to die than babies born vaginally.
According to Arrieta, Peru’s overuse of cesarean sections is due to a 1997 reform that created Health Provider Entities, EPS, which increased the financial incentives for clinics to use more expensive clinical and diagnostic procedures. “Unjustified cesareans have increased in order to compensate for the deterioration of medical funds caused by the reform” said Arrieta.
More than 13,000 women are annually subjected to preventable cesarean sections in Peru.
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Friday, January 4th, 2008
Minister of Women and Social Develepment Susana Pinilla announced plans to open 140 emergency shelters in 2008 for female victims of domestic violence. Pinilla made the announcement during the inauguration of an emergency shelter in Manchay, in Lima province. According to Agencia Andina, the Manchay shelter is Peru’s 67th emergency center.
“Peruvian women have to feel protected by the State,” said Pinilla. “They also have the obligation to bring charges in order to end the circle of violence that exists in families … We won’t allow family, sexual, verbal or psychological violence.”
Peru has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in Latin America. According to a 2005 study by the World Health Organization, 61 percent of women in rural Peru suffered violence by a male intimate partner, while almost 50 percent suffered extreme violence. (more…)
Posted in Criminal Justice, Women | No Comments »
Friday, December 14th, 2007
Australia’s Stephanie Gilmore made surfing history yesterday as the first rookie to be crowned the 2007 ASP World Tour Champion. The 19-year-old ¨natural-footer¨ sealed the title after Peru’s Sofia Mulanovich and Brazil’s Silvana Lima were defeated in round three upsets at the Billabong Pro Maui, the final event on the 2007 ASP World Tour.
Gilmore’s rookie season included victories at the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach in Australia, the NAB Beachley Classic in Sydney and the Mancora Peru Classic. But her ninth place finish at the Roxy Pro Hawaii, event seven of eight on the tour, paved the way for Mulanovich and Lima to contend for the world title at the Billabong Pro Maui.
“Right now, I’m just enjoying the moment,” Gilmore told ASP news. “It’s such an incredible feeling; I honestly can’t describe it. Definitely though, next year I will be bringing my focus back to the tour. I don’t want to lose this feeling, and I can’t wait to finish out the year and head into 2008.” (more…)
Posted in Sports, Uncategorized, Women | No Comments »
Thursday, November 29th, 2007
A report presented by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) on Wednesday shows a strong correlation between health conditions and poverty in Peru. Twenty percent of the poorest population, for instance, bears 50 percent of deaths from nutritional deficiencies and anemia.
The 2007 edition of Health in the Americas is two volumes, with one dedicated to 46 country reports and the other an analysis of hemispheric health conditions from a social and economic perspective.
In Peru ¨nearly all welfare indicators show that rural areas, indigenous populations, females, the jungle region, and the central and southern highlands are at a disadvantage¨ says the country report. (more…)
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Wednesday, November 28th, 2007
Human rights organizations launched Peru’s first national campaign against discrimination of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transvestites (GLBT) and sex workers on Monday. The campaign is organized by the GLBT and Sex Workers Round Table, the National System of Community Defense (SINDECO), the Platform for Vulnerable Communities and the Homosexual Movement of Lima (MHOL), according to the campaign’s website.
Activists will broadcast their message with advertisements on buses, posters on city streets, short films, informative fairs, public marches and meetings with politicians. Twelve regions are participating in the campaign.
(more…)
Posted in GLBT, Law, Women | No Comments »
