Women march for abortion rights across Latin America

By Ana Isabel Martinez | Reuters

MEXICO CITY – Thousands of women demonstrated successful respective Latin American cities connected Tuesday to commemorate the planetary time of enactment for entree to harmless and ineligible abortion, successful a portion wherever the process is afloat permitted lone successful a fistful of countries.

In Mexico City, women marched to the historical halfway nether the regard of constabulary with shields and riot helmets. Authorities enactment up protective fences connected immoderate large buildings and monuments that successful the past person been spray-painted during demonstrations.

“I inactive don’t cognize if I privation to beryllium a mom, but I privation to person the close to decide,” work a motion held by a young pistillate with a greenish scarf astir her neck.

Earlier this period Mexico’s Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional to criminalize termination and, soon after, the authorities said that those jailed connected accusations of having terminated their gestation would beryllium released.

Hundreds of different women marched successful different parts of Mexico, including successful the cities of Cuernavaca and Veracruz.

Every year, thousands of women successful Latin America dice from unsafe abortions astatine a clip erstwhile teenage pregnancies and intersexual unit proceed to summation successful the region.

In Colombia, wherever termination is allowed lone successful cases of rape, risks to the beingness of the mother, oregon commencement defects, immoderate 800 women marched towards the halfway of Bogota.

“Women are reminding states and societies that we’re afloat citizens, not second-class, and that we person the close to abort, to voluntarily interrupt pregnancy, to determine astir our bodies, astir our lives, and astir our maternity wards,” said Ita Maria Diez, a person of the Bogota demonstration.

A march was besides held successful Chile, wherever the little location of Congress agreed to statement a measure to decriminalize termination https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/chile-lawmakers-take-first-step-towards-easing-abortion-rules-2021-09-28 for up to 14 weeks aft pregnancy.

Strict laws

Scores of radical successful El Salvador waved greenish flags and marched done San Salvador en way to Congress to request a loosening of the country’s “strict” termination laws.

Holding up banners saying “it’s our close to decide” and “legal abortion, harmless and free,” the Salvadoran protesters sought to unit legislators to easiness 1 of the world’s strictest termination laws, which prohibit termination of gestation successful cases of rape and adjacent if the mother’s beingness is astatine risk.

The proposals taken to the Salvadoran Congress person been named “Beatriz Reform,” successful grant of a young pistillate who successful 2013 openly called for an termination to prevention her beingness arsenic she suffered from a chronic disease, which took her beingness 4 years later.

“We are asking for minimum measures to adhd to the Penal Code to warrant the beingness and integrity of women,” Morena Herrera, a salient Salvadoran feminist, told journalists.

“It does not necessitate law reform. It tin beryllium done present and if it is existent that determination is independency of powers, the Legislative Assembly indispensable respond,” she added.

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele earlier this period ruled retired immoderate amendments to the termination laws arsenic portion of arguable law changes his authorities is planning.

But respective retired of much than 20 Latin American nations inactive prohibition termination outright, including El Salvador, which has sentenced immoderate women to up to 40 years successful prison.