It is with great
pleasure that we share this story with you.
SI’s Programme Director, Reilly Dempsey, worked on this case in 2006 while
at the Center for Reproductive Rights.
For five years she has been watching this case with bated breath.
Alyne da Silva Pimentel from Brazil died of pregnancy-related causes in
2002 – her case exposed grossly negligence, discriminatory
practices, a shocking lack of access to health care, and a saddening lack of
judicial action or protection. She left
behind a five year old daughter, a grieving mother, and a husband who is no
longer able to care for his daughter. With the help of the Center for Reproductive Rights, her case was submitted to the UN Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination against Women in 2007, alleging that the government of Brazil
had violated her rights to life, health, non-discrimination, and adequate
judicial protection. Although Brazil in
their response denied these allegations, the Committee has found in Alyne’s
favour. The government is now legally
obligated, by way of their ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of all
Forms of Discrimination against Women and its Optional Protocol, to not only
provide financial reparations to Alyne’s family, but also to take immediate
action to address the failings of their health care system to provide
acceptable protection for women in pregnancy.
All other State parties to CEDAW and the Optional Protocol (there are currently
102 parties to both the Convention and the Optional Protocol) will be legally bound
by this decision. This decision will also
carry much weight in the general debate on the role of governments and government-sponsored
health care in providing adequate levels of obstetric care.
Soroptimist International’s 2011 President’s December 10th
Appeal, Birthing in the Pacific, will work to increase the number of skilled birth
attendants and the resources available to them in Papua New Guinea. SI is working alongside the government of PNG to
ensure sustainability and to ensure that the government fulfils their obligations.
Visit the project
page in the coming weeks for more information.
From the Center for Reproductive Rights:
“Alyne da Silva Pimentel would have been 37
years old today if Brazil’s government had honored its responsibility to
protect her fundamental human rights.
Instead, because she was
poor and Afro-Brazilian, she died in 2002 after being denied basic medical care
to address complications in her pregnancy. She was only 28 years old. And her
death was completely preventable.
Although
nothing can reverse Alyne’s fate, a
groundbreaking decision handed down today by the United Nations Committee on
the Elimination of Discrimination against Women means that Alyne’s mother
and daughter will finally see justice served—and women worldwide will benefit
from the ruling issued in her name.
The Center for Reproductive Rights
has been fighting for Alyne and her family for more than eight years. The case
we brought on their behalf is the first maternal
death case to be decided by an international human rights body,
and the import of this decision is tremendous—establishing that governments
have a human rights obligation to guarantee that all women in their
countries—regardless of income or racial background—have access to timely,
non-discriminatory, and appropriate maternal
health services.
The message to governments
worldwide could not be more clear: Access to quality reproductive healthcare
throughout pregnancy is a fundamental right—and governments that fail to
protect this right will be held accountable.
Sadly, Alyne’s story is one
of thousands in Brazil, and all around the world, in which women are denied,
and in some cases refused, basic quality medical care to address common
pregnancy complications. And the countless lives lost unnecessarily as a result
mean that today’s victory can only be regarded as bittersweet.
But today marks the
beginning of a new era. No longer can governments disregard the fundamental
rights of women like Alyne without strict accountability.”
Alyne
da Silva Pimentel v. Brazil (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women)