In El Salvador, authorities have released a 38-year-old woman who was arrested in 2011 and sentenced to 30 years in prison for aggravated manslaughter, human rights groups have reported.

At the time, the judges considered it proven that the woman had terminated the pregnancy prematurely.

Abortion is forbidden in El Salvador in all circumstances, including cases of rape, incest or when the woman's health is at risk.

In the past 20 years, 181 women have been sentenced to long prison terms on charges of illegal abortion.

61 women have since been released.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights ruled last November that El Salvador violated the rights of a woman who was imprisoned and died for violating abortion laws.

El Salvador is not an isolated case.

Abortions are also banned in other Latin American countries.

Human rights and women's movements have been campaigning for more rights and a relaxation of the law for years.