Chile: a pension until the age of majority for the children of murdered women

The Chilean Congress has approved by a large majority a Comprehensive reparation law for victims of femicide and their families. The government of Gabriel Boric, which calls itself “feminist”, has supported the initiative and continues to promote an agenda in defense of the cause of women.

With the RFI correspondent in Santiago, Naïla Derroisné

Since the beginning of the year, 10 femicides have been committed in Chile and 65 assassination attempts on women have been recorded. The new law, which has just been approved by 109 votes in favor and 13 abstentions, aims to support the families of the victims. Their children, in particular, will be able to receive a pension of 180 euros per month until they turn 18.

“When a woman is killed by gender violence, by patriarchal violence, we tend to think that the victim is the woman who died. But no, the victims are also her children, her mother, her father, her sisters. And they do not receive any help from the State, much less complete reparation for the pain they feel,” said Karol Cariola, the communist deputy who promoted the bill.

The text, supported by the President Gabriel Boric, also provides for a year of professional protection for women victims of attempted murder. And for the perpetrators of these crimes, they will be deprived of all parental rights and responsibilities over their children.

This law will also be retroactive, since in Chile, before 2020, Only murders within a couple were considered femicides. The country has changed its legislation and now any murder of a woman committed by a man for reasons of hatred, contempt or misogyny is considered femicide.

Although there are still many battles to fight This is a victory for the Chilean feminist movement and for organizations that fight against violence against women.