Paraguay Responsible For Grave Rights Violations Over Deaths Of Two Young Girls, UN Committee Finds

GENEVA (22 January 2025) - Paraguay is accountable for grave human rights violations concerning the killings of two 11-year-old girls during an operation conducted by the Joint Task Force of Paraguay against the Paraguayan People’s Army, a guerrilla group, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has found.

The Committee made public its report today after carrying out a confidential inquiry on the deaths of Lilian Mariana Villalba and María Carmen Villalba, who were executed by the State Joint Task Force in September 2020. The Committee received a complaint about the unlawful killings and allegations that Paraguay took various measures to cover up the incident.

“The killings of the two 11-year-old girls was a grave violation of the right to life, especially given the direct involvement of the State Joint Task Force,” said the Committee, adding, “This violation is further aggravated by Paraguay’s failure to conduct a thorough investigation, suggesting either severe negligence or an intentional cover-up of important details.”

According to the information received by the Committee, the two young girls were killed in Yby Yaú, the Department of Concepción, in early September 2020. The two bodies were hastily buried, and the authorities initially stated that they were 15 and 18 years old.

The Paraguayan judiciary demanded the exhumation of the bodies three days later, and an autopsy confirmed the girls were indeed much younger, only 11 years old. The postmortem also found bullet wounds on the front and back of the bodies, but forensic experts could not establish the distance at which the bullets were fired because the girls’ clothes had been destroyed.

The Committee launched an inquiry according to Article 13 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure and appointed two investigators from Committee members. They interviewed 32 people, including witnesses and State party officials such as the Commanding Officer of the Joint Task Force, the Head of the Anti-Kidnapping Department of the National Police, and chiefs of the human rights directorates of various Ministries.

“Evidence shows that the State party did not comply with its obligations to respect, protect and fulfil the two girls’ right to life,” the Committee said.

“The State party bears particular responsibilities for the arbitrary deprivation of life of the young victims and for failing to conduct a proper investigation, leaving critical gaps in understanding the cause, manner, and circumstances of the girls’ deaths,” the Committee stated.

The Committee, however, noted there was insufficient evidence to determine whether these violations were systematic violations of rights under the Convention.

The Committee called upon Paraguay to take adequate steps to bring the investigation of the two girls’ deaths to a close, including considering the assistance of an international expert mission. It also asked the State party to strengthen its legal and regulatory framework infrastructure regarding its law enforcement officials.

In response to the Committee, Paraguay expressed its deep regret at the loss of two lives. However, it disputed the findings of arbitrary State actions, citing evidence of proportional self-defence by security forces and ongoing investigations. Nonetheless, Paraguay reaffirmed its dedication to combating organized crime and ensuring justice and accountability.

Background:

The Committee on the Rights of the Child monitors States parties' adherence to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols on involvement of children in armed conflict, and on sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The Convention to date has 196 States parties. The Committee is made up of 18 members who are independent human rights experts drawn from around the world, who serve in their personal capacity and not as representatives of States parties.

The Committee may initiate an inquiry procedure if it receives reliable information indicating grave or systematic violations by a State party of any of the rights contained in the Convention or in its Optional Protocols on, respectively, the involvement of children in armed conflict (OPAC) or the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (OPSC).

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