Key Macri ally faces murder charges after forcing 12 year-old rape victim to give birth; baby dead

[sandensea]

Gerardo Morales, governor of Argentina's remote Jujuy Province and a close ally of President Mauricio Macri, faces potential murder charges for having used his office to force a 12 year-old rape victim to give birth - a decision leading to the infant's death days later.

The decision has been condemned by both pro-choice and pro-life activists, who announced they intend to file murder charges against Morales and Health Minister Gustavo Bouhid today.

The young mother, who had sought an abortion at the provincial maternity hospital, became a rallying cry for pro-life groups and Argentina's influential Catholic Church.

But despite support from her parents and the hospital's decision to carry out the abortion, Governor Morales reportedly ordered hospital staff to effect the birth against the mother's wishes.

Accordingly, a cesarean section was carried out on January 18. Born severely premature (23 weeks) as a result, the 703 gram (24.7 oz) baby died just four days later.

The obstetrician who carried out the cesarean birth, Dr. Gustavo Briones, resigned his post in protest on January 30, noting that Morales and Bouhid ignored all medical recommendations and forced her to give birth.

Morales claimed on January 21 that "a prominent Jujuy family was interested in adopting the baby." The infant died the next day.

Legal but illegal

Numerous leading Argentine pro-life groups - traditional allies of the right-wing Morales - have declared their intent to pursue the governor's impeachment.

Morales' interference, activists note, was unjustified even under current law: Abortion in Argentina, while still illegal in most cases, has been legal in cases of rape or to save the mother's life since 1921.

According to the Ministry of Health, around 370,000 abortions are performed in the country annually - up to 50,000 of which result in complications, and, in 2017, in 30 deaths.

A bill legalizing abortion on demand up to the 14th week passed the lower house of Congress last June but was defeated on August 8 in the Senate.

Two-thirds of Macri's "Let's Change" coalition - to which Morales belongs - voted against the bill.

At: https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&tab=wT&sl=auto&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiempoar.com.ar%2Fnota%2Fimpulsan-denuncia-penal-y-juicio-politico-contra-el-gobernador-gerardo-morales

Jujuy Province Governor Gerardo Morales (left) and his Health Minister, Gustavo Bouhid.

Both face murder charges for forcing a 12 year-old rape victim to gave birth - and without her or her family's consent.

The baby, still premature at 23 weeks, died four days later.

The right-wing Morales has likewise been condemned by human rights groups for his use of arbitrary detention against political prisoners.

[mr_lebowski]

1. How is delivering a baby by c-section at 23 weeks ... NOT an abortion?

And how can it be called 'forcing her to give birth' ... when she did not, in fact, 'give birth'?

And how is it 'murder' if the fetus lived outside the womb for 4 days (and then apparently died of something approaching natural causes) ... whereas a normal abortion would've meant that the fetus most certainly would ALSO not have lived, due to clearly unnatural causes?

If this a-hole wanted to force the 12 year old to 'give birth', why didn't they just refuse an abortion and refuse a c-section at 23 weeks, and make her carry to term?

None of this makes ANY f***ing sense to me. Poor girl, and poor fetus.

[GemDigger]

2. I'm with you with the questions.

There are too many things about this that just don't add up.

[sandensea]

4. I hear you.

I tired to clarify a few points, as I understand them, in the post below.

This seems to have been motivated by both cold, crass politics (elections are coming up, and Morales felt that by "rescuing" the baby he could rescue himself), as well as possible corruption.

He would be right at home in the GOP, I think.

[sandensea]

3. Welcome to Macri's Argentina

Given the girl's - and her family's - strong feeling that she should, in fact, abort, Morales apparently felt the only way to "rescue" the baby was to literally extract it.

They couldn't, after all, keep the girl in the hospital against her wishes or her parents'.

And with an election coming up, he probably felt it would be a good way to earn the pro-life vote (40% or so in Argentina).

But there's a possible corruption angle here as well: he himself admitted that a "prominent local family" wanted the baby.

The baby, you see, was white - and was thus worth its weight in gold in a province where most inhabitants are mestizos (people who look like the average Mexican); but most of the moneyed class is white.

So there could have been a payoff involved for Morales as well.

[GemDigger]

5. This is appalling. This is exactly why male politicians without a OB/GYN license should never

never have a say about something they know nothing about. I hope they fry his ass.

[sandensea]

6. It is.

My guess is that he - and his boss, President Macri - will be defeated and move to Miami to avoid prosecution.

Cheeto will welcome them with open arms I'm sure.