Beatriz et al. v. El Salvador. Scope and limits of a step forward for reproductive justice before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Abstract

Beatriz et al. v. El Salvador, decided by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in 2024, is the first judgment in which the Court directly confronted the effects of an absolute abortion ban. The decision raises the broader question of the compatibility of such a regime with the American Convention on Human Rights, particularly in light of the State’s positive obligations in the field of reproductive health. The judgment articulates an integrated framework grounded in the rights to personal integrity, privacy, health, and effective judicial protection. It requires States to secure clear legal frameworks, evidence-based clinical protocols, timely medical decision-making, and effective remedies in obstetric emergencies. In doing so, it establishes a standard capable of immediate operational relevance for domestic authorities. At the same time, the ruling reveals a measure of judicial restraint. Rather than addressing in abstracto whether an absolute abortion ban is, in itself, compatible with the Convention, the Court concentrates on the concrete consequences of legal uncertainty and the absence of adequate medical guidance. Beatriz therefore marks an important, yet incomplete, step in the development of Inter-American reproductive rights jurisprudence: it consolidates the justiciability of reproductive health obligations while leaving unresolved the recognition of an explicit right to abortion under Inter-American law