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Belén, a young lesbian member of the Paraguayan Volunteer Firefighters Corps, was the victim of a gang rape in the city of Ypacaraí (37km from Asunción, Central Department) on Sunday, January 2, at a meeting between active firefighters and aspiring firefighters, after having finished their academy course. 

According to a statement posted on social media by her mother, Lucía Valenzuela, the assailants, Rodney Piris and César Federico Molinas, a friend and a firefighter hopeful, respectively, drugged her and took her to a construction materials store owned by Rodney Piris, where they raped her. They then dressed her again and took her home. The following day, they came to her house to give her a birth control pill. Prosecutor Blanca Aquino, in charge of the investigation, filed charges on Tuesday morning.

In an interview with Presentes, Lucía explained that the aspiring volunteer firefighters had their oath rehearsal in Emboscada that day and that they would then go out to celebrate together. “She always told me, ‘He knows I’m a lesbian, he won’t do anything to me. I trust him.’ My daughter didn’t tell me until eight days later. Belén became very close friends with that young man, Molinas; I even knew him. He even gave me a ride home because I was selling my crafts in downtown Ypacaraí. We trusted him completely,” she said.

According to Lucía, at one point only a few of the "comrades" (as the CBV members call themselves) remained, and they stopped by a pharmacy under the pretext of buying Yerón, a popular medication in pill form used to relieve discomfort caused by excessive alcohol, food, or tobacco. They then traveled from the barracks to Rodney Piris's building materials store, where they would say their farewells.

“Since they had gone out together many times before, Belén took the pill with complete confidence. Even more so because it was Molina who gave it to her. But she told me that on that journey, another boy saw her take the pill. After leaving him, they told her that this would be the last batch they were going to take, while they waited for the others, and if not, they would take Belén home later too, since it was the last one,” Lucía continued. 

"She'll start liking men now."

At that moment, the young woman began to feel unwell. Lucía explains that they offered Belén a place to lie down in the office; she lay down and began to fall asleep. Belén then overheard Rodney Piris and César Federico Molinas say, “We’ll take turns” and “after this, she’ll like men.” When they dressed her again, they put one of their belts on her.

According to Lucía's account, one of them even went to her house the next day to bring her a morning-after pill. This box is also part of the evidence presented. Among the evidence the prosecution has is also a belt belonging to one of the accused. 

Belén filed the report on January 10, eight days after the incident. A forensic doctor examined her and stated that “no injuries or traces of violence consistent with the crime were found.” However, Belén's lawyer, Maira Torres, explained that she did not receive a complete examination and that she had to request a separate one.

On January 19, the prosecutor's office raided the site where the abuse occurred and obtained CCTV footage that is currently being analyzed. They also summoned other members of the Volunteer Fire Department to testify. The toxicology test could not be performed because more than 48 hours had passed. In a statement, the Public Prosecutor's Office maintains that the prosecutor requested psychological evaluations of the victim.

The prosecutor in the case is Milena Basualdo, the same one who handled the Meliza Fleitas femicide case. Presentes attempted to contact Prosecutor Basualdo, who claimed to be on vacation. She referred the media outlet to the acting prosecutor, Blanca Aquino, who did not respond to the request for information. 

Corrective rape, a "punishment" for sexual orientation

“She’s a lesbian, her classmates knew, and it was a corrective rape. It was motivated by her sexual orientation,” feminist lawyer Michi Moragas, who is assisting the case through the Feminist Legal Clinic, told Presentes. “They drugged her, abused her, dressed her, and while dressing her, they put one of their belts on her, not hers. Then, the next day, they went to get the belt back and gave her an emergency contraceptive pill.” 

Maira Torres, Belén's lawyer, agrees with this point and adds that it was a homophobic crime. “The prosecution was very slow and biased. Let's hope that Blanca Aquino, who is currently serving as interim head, can manage the Unit better.” 

“Underlying corrective rape is the idea that a lesbian is a lesbian because she hasn't found a good man, or that one can change their sexual orientation if that's the case. Or, if a woman has sex with a man, she stops being a lesbian, and in this specific case, it was something that was told to her very explicitly,” Moragas explained. 

Rosa Posa, an activist with Aireana, a lesbian rights group, stated that there is an obsession with correcting lesbians' sexual orientation. “Corrective rapes happen far more often than we know and more than are reported. They also occur within families, shrouded in silence and shame. These things go unreported for many reasons: because of the closet, the reasons women always face, and because of discrimination for being lesbians,” Rosa said. 

“Everything related to lesbianism is shrouded in silence. Denial is constant, stemming from the violence. If she was raped, it's by chance, not because she's a lesbian; if you're fired from a job, it's never because you're a lesbian. It's a denial of our entire existence, even when we are murdered and raped. I believe that rape is terrible, regardless of the victim's sexual orientation,” Rosa emphasized. In her words, the message of discipline consists of reminding them of “their place” as lesbians. 

A plea for justice for Bethlehem

On Friday, January 21, women organized a demonstration in front of the Itauguá Prosecutor's Office. There was also a demonstration in the Ypacaraí town square on Sunday, organized by Belén's family and friends. Today, the final demonstration took place, minutes before the indictment and arrest warrant for Rodney Piris and César Federico Molinas were announced. The Fire Department issued a statement condemning the crime and any form of abuse against women.

A source from the Not One More Firefighter movement told Presentes that this is not an isolated incident. When the complaint against Rubén Valdez, a captain in the Paraguayan Volunteer Fire Department, a protocol was developed. According to the activist, the protocol is being followed, but many female volunteers are afraid to report abuse for fear of repercussions within the organization. 

She spoke of a misogynistic culture stemming from the CBVP's hierarchical structure. “The volunteers still have very sexist customs. For example, when there's a shift where all the volunteers are men, they call it a 'perfect shift' because there isn't a woman. It's painful because many times female volunteers are relegated to the ambulance; they aren't sent to fight fires. Again, caregiving tasks are assigned to women, and firefighting tasks to men,” she stated.

“There seems to be a pattern of cover-up. There’s a lot of harassment, and one of the problems is that they have a very strict disciplinary system that practically prevents anyone from making public complaints. That’s why you don’t see female firefighters talking about it,” Moragas explained. In fact, according to the victim’s mother, both Molinas and Piris told her that no one would believe her when she said she didn’t want to be involved.

Paraguay remains the only country in the Southern Cone that lacks an anti-discrimination law, which prevents the implementation of a mechanism for receiving complaints and applying the corresponding sanction.