There will be no end of flowers
Between 270,000 and 350,000 indigenous women were brutally sterilized in Peru, during the government of the former dictator Alberto Fujimori. He launched a reproductive health and family planning program with the goal of reducing poverty by using sterilization as a contraceptive method in 1996. These were Quechua, Andean or Amazonian women, from indigenous communities, sometimes not speaking Spanish. “We lost our strength when they opened our wombs”, says Concepcion, “sometimes we feel useless, we can't cultivate the land because we are sterile”. The indigenous world is very complex as they believe both the human body and the Earth are a single being. I portrayed Concepcion Contoy and Aurelia Paccohuanca, two indigenous Quechua women from Cusco, sterilized by force at their young age. To represent them, I first took into account my own history. As a woman, I defend our fundamental rights to decide about our sexuality and I stand for an end to violent policies towards our bodies. Furthermore, I am of Quechua descent and I identify to the Andean world. I remembered the importance of flowers at that time of the year for Andean festivities that are nothing more than calls to the dead, to the specters of the culture that once inhabited our lands. Through these indigenous symbols and their testimonies, I accompanied them in their fight against a racist and genocidal government. On December 11, 2021, after more than 25 years, the Peruvian government opened a penal process against Fujimori. This year, the thousands of victims will finally be able to raise their voices in a legitimate demand for justice. There will be no end of flowers- is a photo series focused on the woman testimonies and resilience mixing documentary photos and indigenous symbolism. I believe that with this photographic medium and with the personal language that I am constructing, I can contribute to the awareness of the indigenous woman health, body and sexual rights.












