A 34-year-old El Salvador woman was released yesterday after spending 15 years in jail on charges of inducing an abortion.
Maira Veronica Figueroa was sentenced to 30 years in prison for aggravated murder in 2003.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Figueroa’s release “puts the spotlight on El Salvador’s total ban on abortion as the Central American nation faces mounting international pressure to overturn its strict law and release other women jailed for abortion-related crimes”, says Reuters.
Since the Catholic-majority nation banned abortion in 1998, dozens of women “have been accused of having illegal terminations after experiencing obstetric emergencies” and later convicted of murder, says The Guardian. The ban on abortion includes cases of rape, incest and when the woman’s life is at risk.
Five other countries in Central America also prohibit all abortions. But although El Salvador is not alone in having a blanket ban, “the country is particularly strict in the way it enforces it”, says BBC.
At least another 27 women are currently in jail under the country’s abortion law, according to the rights group Citizen Group for the Decriminalization of Abortion (CFDA). Rights groups say many of these women were wrongly imprisoned after suffering miscarriages, stillbirths or pregnancy complications.
Nancy Northup, head of the US-based Center for Reproductive Rights, which campaigned for Figueroa to be freed, yesterday said in a statement: “It is inconceivable that Maira spent almost 15 years in prison for experiencing a pregnancy complication.
“While we celebrate Maira’s release today, we condemn the government of El Salvador for not acknowledging the lack of due process and failing to recognize her innocence.”
Although Figueroa was freed early, her conviction has not been overturned, meaning she is still considered guilty of murder.
-
Dive right into these 8 underwater adventuresThe Week Recommends It’s time to make a splash
-
The world’s oldest rock art reveals hints about human migrationUnder the Radar The art is believed to be over 67,000 years old
-
Grok in the crosshairs as EU launches deepfake porn probeIN THE SPOTLIGHT The European Union has officially begun investigating Elon Musk’s proprietary AI, as regulators zero in on Grok’s porn problem and its impact continent-wide
-
Israel retrieves final hostage’s body from GazaSpeed Read The 24-year-old police officer was killed during the initial Hamas attack
-
China’s Xi targets top general in growing purgeSpeed Read Zhang Youxia is being investigated over ‘grave violations’ of the law
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Russia’s ‘weird’ campaign to boost its birth rateUnder the Radar Demographic crisis spurs lawmakers to take increasingly desperate measures
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
