El Salvador: woman sentenced to 30 years in prison for homicide after miscarriage

Source: The Guardian and agencies

El Salvador: woman sentenced to 30 years in prison for homicide after miscarriage

Activists say case offers a stark warning to women in the US, where the supreme court is considering overturning Roe v Wade

Staff and agencies in San Salvador
Tue 10 May 2022 23.39 BST
Last modified on Wed 11 May 2022 00.11 BST

A court in El Salvador has sentenced a woman who suffered a miscarriage to 30 years in prison for aggravated homicide, in a case which activists said offers a stark warning to women in the United States, where the supreme court is considering overturning a key ruling which legalized abortion.

The woman, identified only as “Esme”, was sentenced on Monday, after nearly two years under pre-trial detention, following her arrest when she sought medical care in a public hospital.

“Esme’s sentencing is a devastating step backward for the progress that has been made in the unlawful criminalization of women suffering obstetric emergencies in El Salvador,” said Paula Avila-Guillen, international human rights lawyer and executive director of the Women’s Equality Center.

Avila-Guillen warned that as the United States faces the possible overturning of Roe v Wade – the 1973 supreme court ruling that effectively legalised abortion – similar cases will become more common across the world.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/may/10/el-salvador-woman-sentenced-prison-after-miscarriage