Via RH Reality Check:
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in San Jose, Costa Rica, the highest human rights court in the Americas, handed down Thursday a decision ordering the government of El Salvador to provide Beatriz with life-saving care. It ordered the state to provide the measures necessary to protect her life, health, and well-being, as well as refrain from interfering with the actions the doctors consider appropriate.
Beatriz, a 22-year-old woman who suffers from several life-threatening health problems, is 25 weeks pregnant with an anencephalic fetus, meaning it is missing part of its brain and will likely die at birth or shortly thereafter. Her doctors recommended she receive an abortion, and she requested one on April 11. However, abortion is illegal under all circumstances in El Salvador.
The spokesperson for the Inter-American Court, Paola Ugaz, explained that the case is not going through formal channels; rather, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights asked the judges to issues an immediate order to the Salvadoran government to avoid irreparable harm to Beatriz. This is the first case on abortion that the court has considered. The government has until June 7 to present a first report to the court on its compliance with the measures ordered.
~snip~
According to the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), the court’s decisions carry a mandatory requirement for governmental compliance since El Salvador is a member state of the Organization of American States and signed the American Convention on Human Rights, which includes acceptance of the court’s competency.
This is good news, but obviously, we’ll have to wait and see what happens, since the government has until June 7 to report on its compliance with the order.
[via RH Reality Check]
Patricia Kayden
Good to hear that someone has sense! What happens if El Salvador fails to comply with this mandatory order?
peggy
Hope that it works.
More evidence for why the US refused to join the World Court. Foreign enforced justice and rationality would obviously be a ‘bad thing’.
pokeyblow
Good news.
TaMara (BHF)
Thanks ABL for keeping watch on this and giving us options to help. If I’m ever in trouble, I’d want you on my team.
dr. bloor
Some country with a little clout needs to remind the powers that be in El Salvador just how easy it would be to fail their state. Knocking down that government would be a weekend project.
Dee Loralei
That’s great news. I hope they comply.
Shakezula
Excellent news. Hopefully her doctor zipped her into the nearest OR the minute this ruling came down. Perhaps this will cause ES to rethink its law.
ShadeTail
@dr. bloor:
Don’t even joke, that crosses the line. Haven’t we had enough misguided attempts at “regime change” already?
muddy
@TaMara (BHF): Agreed.
muddy
@TaMara (BHF): Agreed.
dr. bloor
@efgoldman: @efgoldman: Yeah, my comment was a little too blunt. The point really being that there are 1,232,292 ways to give the government a politcal wedgie that makes them cry “uncle” without wrecking the place.
However, getting her out is so obvious, expedient and cheap that maybe it’s not quite as easy as many think it is.
Phoenician in a time of Romans
According to the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), the court’s decisions carry a mandatory requirement for governmental compliance since El Salvador is a member state of the Organization of American States and signed the American Convention on Human Rights, which includes acceptance of the court’s competency.
“Well, we’ll certainly put that on the agenda, and we’ll address it in a few months”.
Bastards.
Emma
@Phoenician in a time of Romans: They have a limited time to answer. It’s going to be a doozy of a confrontation, unless someone in El Salvador gets an attack of sanity.
NonyNony
Just saw this, which should mean that the government isn’t even going to try to fight it:
If I’m understanding it right, they’re getting her the abortion by calling it a C-section.
Hooray for someone having the sanity to realize that this was a monstrous thing to do. And what the fuck – all the way up to the fucking MINISTER OF HEALTH to get this done. How many women in that country die every year because their cases don’t get enough publicity to get the minister of health’s notice?
Tom_B
This gives the dweebs on the Salvadoran court an easy, somewhat “face saving” out. They would be unwise to further persecute this poor woman.
ShadeTail
@Tom_B:
That’s putting it mildly. At this point, prosecuting her would be *illegal* because, by law, they must allow her to have an abortion.
The question is, how seriously does El Salvador take its treaty obligations? I confess I know very little about their government.
Violet
Thanks for keeping us updated. I’m glad things are moving in the right direction for her.
Shrillhouse
So, did that new pope ever weigh in on this matter? I’d be curious to hear his thoughtful and well-reasoned take on the situation…
Roger Moore
@peggy:
Some commie “human rights” court might claim the damnedest thing, like health care as a right, even for the poor and wrongly pigmented, and then where would we be?
NonyNony
@Roger Moore:
In violation of a treaty because there’s no way we’d do anything about it other than ignore them?
burnspbesq
How do you issue a bench warrant for a country and throw it in jail for contempt until it complies?
Because you know that’s where this is going.
karen
Remember, in Arizona they either passed a law or were trying to pass a law that said that a doctor didn’t have to tell a woman she had a terminal illness (AKA lying) if the doctor believed that the treatment could kill the fetus?
And if Beatriz was in the US? If she was in Mississippi? Or Texas? Or Arizona? How many people believe that one of the many church owned hospitals (most are) would have saved this woman? Or let’s say it’s not church owned and she was in a red state? Do you really think that if a doctor acted like a doctor and did the same thing that El Salvador is being ordered to do that the GOP in that state would not be demanding that the doctor be thrown in jail and get his license taken away?.
Phoenician in a time of Romans
@Roger Moore:
Some commie “human rights” court might claim the damnedest thing, like health care as a right,
Or that, you know, laying mines in the harbors of other countries was a violation of international law?
Shortstop
Thanks for the update, Imani. And thanks to NonyNony for letting us know that the Salvadoran government is already complying. All good news.
Gretchen
@Karen: Kansas has that law also, which is why my daughter is getting ob care on the Missouri side.
Ruckus
Sorta hard to believe that we are in the 21st century isn’t it? I’m just stunned(OK not really stunned, but really hating that I’m not stunned) that a woman in any country gets treated this way. That we seem to be more worried that some idiot may attempt to blow up anything with a 6 oz tube of crest than that half the earth’s population is being treated like – now here is the part where I’m speechless because I can not even comprehend and for sure can not describe how shitty this is.