Addressing stigma while moving a national campaign – Spotlight on El Salvador

#OjosEnElSalvador #EyesOnElSalvador

Posted January 29, 2019
by inroads Comms, with Sara García Gross

As 2018 came to a close, the feminist and social movements of El Salvador had a great victory, one which inspired activists across the world. For years, ever since a 1998 penal code harshened laws even more to ban abortion under any circumstance, Salvadoran feminist activist groups have been fighting to end the criminalization and stigmatization of abortion in their country, which is one of 26 countries in the world where abortion is completely prohibited without exceptions. After years of sexual abuse from a family member, Imelda Cortez became pregnant, and then gave birth outside of the hospital. For this, she was accused of attempting an abortion and then jailed. There, she awaited trial under attempted murder charges for almost two years. This is not uncommon, and there are still 25 women in El Salvador who remain incarcerated for having pregnancy complications, appearing to have an abortion, and for circumstances related to reproductive health. But after a generation of strategizing and organizing; collective direct actions appealing to the Attorney General; and leveraging the call to #SalvemosAImelda in a wide reaching international campaign; organizers were able to achieve a hard fought victory for justice in December 2018. Imelda Cortez was free.

Continued: http://makeinroads.org/making-inroads/2019/January/ojosenelsalvador-eyesonelsalvador


FRANCE – The Simone-de-Beauvoir Prize 2019 has gone to Salvadoran Sara García Gross, for her work for the right to abortion

FRANCE – The Simone-de-Beauvoir Prize 2019 has gone to Salvadoran Sara García Gross, for her work for the right to abortion

by International Campaign for Women's Right to Safe Abortion
Jan 11, 2019

Sara García Gross has been advocating for the right of women to decide what to do with their bodies for a decade now, in a country where the anti-abortion legislation is among the most restrictive in the world.

The award will be presented at the Maison de l’Amérique latine in Paris. It was created in 2008 on the 100th anniversary of the birth of Simone de Beauvoir in order to “help mobilise international solidarity, reaffirm the rights of women in the world, guarantee the protection of those who today struggle against the risk to women’s lives, and defend by their side the ideals of equality and peace”.

Continued: http://www.safeabortionwomensright.org/france-the-simone-de-beauvoir-prize-2019-has-gone-to-salvadoran-sara-garcia-gross-for-her-work-for-the-right-to-abortion/


EL SALVADOR – Interview with Sara García Gross: « In El Salvador, when a woman falls pregnant, she loses her right to life. »

EL SALVADOR – Interview with Sara García Gross: « In El Salvador, when a woman falls pregnant, she loses her right to life. »

June 22, 2018
by International Campaign for Women's Right to Safe Abortion

El Salvador is ruled by what began as a leftist party and over the years has passed a series of policies in support of women’s rights. But on the subject of abortion there has always been silence. Although they were the first party to introduce an abortion law reform bill after 20 years in power, they then postponed the debate with the excuse of introducing other priority issues, which shows that fundamentalist pressure on them is strong and influential. Among the fundamentalists, there is not only the Catholic Church but also groups related to Opus Dei, who have organised campaigns to discredit and disparage our work on sexual and reproductive rights.

Pope John Paul II visited El Salvador; he was totally anti-abortion. Streets bear his name. Currently, there is a process of canonisation of Bishop Romero, which had already been declared a saint by the people, so it was not even necessary for the church to recognise him. The fundamentalist movement takes advantage of his popularity to promote anti-abortion messages.

Continued: http://www.safeabortionwomensright.org/el-salvador-interview-with-sara-garcia-gross-in-el-salvador-when-a-woman-falls-pregnant-she-loses-her-right-to-life/