Hundreds of Colombians with learning disabilities sterilized every year

Hundreds of Colombians with learning disabilities sterilized every year
Sep 8, 2014 posted by Craig Corbett

502 girls and 127 boys with learning disabilities such as downs syndrome were permanently sterilized between 2009 and 2011, according to reports by the Ministry of Health.

In an interview with El Espectador Monica Cortes, founder of human rights organization Asdown said that more needs to be done to protect the sexual rights of people with learning difficulties in Colombia.

According to Cortes, a concerning amount of young people with learning disabilities are undertaking non-reversible sterilization on the recommendation of Colombian doctors. Families are attending Colombia Pro-familia Sexual Health Clinics daily to request sterilization for their children with learning disabilities.

“When the girls begin to develop sexually, the families begin to panic. They go to the doctors and the first thing that they are recommended is this permanent method of birth control,” said Cortes. Cortes argues that the high level of sterilizations in Colombia represents a general ignorance about learning disabilities and a breach of the human rights for people with conditions such as autism and downs syndrome.

More:
http://colombiareports.co/hundreds-colombians-learning-difficulties-sterilized-every-year/