In El Salvador, the last woman imprisoned for abortion-related charges has urged people to stop denouncing women who experience obstetric emergencies, marking her first public comments since her release. El Salvador has strict abortion laws that extend to women who suffer miscarriages and stillbirths, resulting in many women being sentenced to decades in prison for allegedly killing their children.
Two local civil rights groups reported that the 28-year-old woman, known as Lilian, was the last woman still imprisoned on such charges, while others are still facing legal proceedings.
Lilian made her plea during a press conference after being acquitted by a judge last month, following seven years behind bars. She was sentenced to 30 years before her release. The civil rights groups mentioned that Lilian gave birth to a girl in a public hospital, with the baby dying 72 hours later under the care of doctors. Nonetheless, Lilian was prosecuted for neglect and later for aggravated homicide.
After a judge reviewed the 2015 sentence, Lillian was acquitted on the grounds that both she and her daughter were in a vulnerable condition in the hospital when the events occurred, the groups said. Lilian, who also has a 10-year-old child, expressed happiness at being reunited with her family.
Since 2012, the Citizens’ Group for the Decriminalization of Abortion and the Feminist Collective have campaigned for the release of women facing up to 50 years in prison on charges of aggravated homicide. They stated that their campaigns have helped release 73 women, though another six cases are being processed and 11 remain active because the attorney general’s office decided not to file the appeals. These women are currently not in prison.
The attorney general’s office of El Salvador has not immediately responded to a request for comment. The country’s Central American neighbors Nicaragua and Honduras, as well as the Dominican Republic, also impose blanket bans on abortion, including in cases of rape and when the mother’s life is at risk.
Reported by Nelson Renteria; Written by Raul Cortes and Sarah Morland. Edited by Leslie Adler.
