Pardon issued for one of El Salvador’s 17 women serving prison time for miscarriage

San José, Costa Rica 21 de enero del 2015.- Carmen Guadalupe, one of 17 women unjustly imprisoned in El Salvador for not carrying her pregnancy to full term due to medical complications, received a pardon from the Legislative Assembly today. After being behind bars for over six years, Carmen Guadalupe must be freed immediately.

At the age of 18, Carmen Guadalupe became pregnant as a result of rape. Due to medical complications, she was not able to carry the pregnancy to full term. She was then taken to the National Hospital in San Bartolo where medical staff reported her to authorities for having an abortion.  During the course of her hospital stay, Carmen Guadalupe was interrogated without any legal representation present. Although no evidence or proof ever showed that Carmen caused the death of her child and an autopsy later established that the cause of death was undetermined, she was condemned to serve 30 years in prison. Today, Carmen Guadalupe is 23 years old and has been in jail since 2007.

Carmen Guadalupe is part of a group of 17 women who are serving prison time in El Salvador due to miscarriages caused by medical complications. Currently, El Salvador is one of seven countries in Latin America and the Caribbean where abortion is absolutely prohibited by law, even when the woman’s life is in danger or the pregnancy is the product of rape or incest.

This type of legislation is contrary to the State’s obligation to respect and guarantee women’s right to health, life and a life free of violence and discrimination. Additionally, the sentence imposed on Carmen Guadalupe and the remaining 16 violated their rights to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. Throughout the course of their trials, the defense appeared apathetic and disconnected, barely remembering the names of those they were defending.

However, the pardon represents an important opportunity for victims unjustly imprisoned for miscarrying. According to the National Criminological Council, only four of the 17 have been considered for a pardon because the children survived the medical complications experienced during the course of their pregnancy. The remaining 12—whose children died—were considered at a high risk of reoccurrence due to their educational levels and their socioeconomic status.

“The pardon is a step forward in guaranteeing that the State will comply with its obligations of respecting and guaranteeing women’s rights. However, there is still much work ahead of us. Women who are victims of miscarriages caused by medical problems do not deserve being interrogated, handcuffed, and arrested,” said Marcia Aguiluz, CEJIL’s Program Director for Central America and Mexico, “No woman deserves to be re-victimized and stigmatized for her socioeconomic background. We demand that the rest of the victims be freed immediately.”