Chile’s congress passed a new law that protects the children of women who were killed because of their gender.
Women take part in a march called by the movement “Ni una menos” (Not One Less) against violence against women in Santiago, on May 11, 2018. (Photo credit should read MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP via Getty Images)
The bill was introduced in 2021 by a group of women lawmakers and women’s rights organizations, seeking to help children of women who were murdered by their partners and left with nothing but a “murdered mother and an imprisoned father“.
A girl holds a protest sign in Santiago, Chile, during a demonstration on International Women’s Day on March 8. (Photo by Vanessa Rubilar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The law was passed in April 2023 with a majority of 109 votes and 13 abstentions.
Demonstrators wearing green handkerchiefs covering their eyes sing and dance to protest violence against women on December 6, 2019 in Santiago, Chile. (Photo by Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images)
The new law will provide financial assistance to the children of femicide victims until they reach the age of 18.
A child carries a sign during International Women’s Day protest on March 8, 2018 in Osorno, Chile. (Photo by Fernando Lavoz/NurPhoto)
Children will get roughly 160,000 Chilean pesos per month (approximately US$200) and will be able to apply for state benefits and programs.
Women take part in a demonstration for the International Women’s Day, in Santiago, Chile, on March 8, 2023 (Photo by Francisco Paredes/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
It will also provide women survivors of attempted femicide with employment protection for up to 12 months.
Chile’s Minister of Women and Gender Equity, Antonia Orellana, said the goal for the law is to protect children’s wellbeing and break the cycle of violence.
A demonstrator holds a sign during a march in support of women’s rights in the framework of International Women’s Day, in Santiago on March 8, 2023. (Photo by MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP via Getty Images)
The law is “one of the most comprehensive legal measures in Latin America” to support relatives of femicide, according to the BBC.
Women recreate a women’s rights dance performance from Chile that became a symbol against gender violence and patriarchy at the Zocalo square in Mexico City, on November 29, 2019. (Photo by CLAUDIO CRUZ/AFP via Getty Images)
“This is the first [which provides for] a permanent state allowance for the affected child,” lawyer Danitza Pérez Cáceres said, according to the BBC.
Although the law sets a precedent in Latin America, Cáceres added it remains to be seen if it works.
Women recreate a feminist choreographed performance originated in Chile which became viral against gender violence and patriarchy at the Zocalo square in Mexico City, on November 29, 2019. (Photo by CLAUDIO CRUZ / AFP) (Photo by CLAUDIO CRUZ/AFP via Getty Images)
Latin American is one of the regions with highest rates of gender violence.
