Monday 30th November 2015- BBC News: NI abortion law ‘breaches human rights’

‘Abortion legislation in Northern Ireland is in breach of human rights law, the Belfast High Court has ruled.

Currently, termination of pregnancy is only allowed if a woman’s life is at risk or there is a permanent or serious risk to her mental or physical health.

The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) brought the case to extend abortion to cases of serious foetal malformation, rape or incest.

The 1967 Abortion Act does not apply to Northern Ireland.’

‘A judicial review found the grounds for abortion should be extended in Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland’s Attorney General John Larkin said in a brief statement that he was “profoundly disappointed” by the decision and was “considering the grounds for appeal”.

In his ruling on Monday, Mr Justice Horner said women who were the victims of sexual crime and cases of fatal foetal abnormality were entitled to exemptions in the law.

He said given that the issue was unlikely to be addressed by the Northern Ireland Executive in the foreseeable future, and that Northern Ireland citizens were entitled to “have their [European Convention on Human] rights protected by the courts”, the current legislation was in breach of their human rights.’

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NI abortion law ‘breaches human rights’

Northern Irish women deserve full access to abortion. Today they inched one step closer- The Telegraph

Friday 11th September 2015- The Telegraph: Forcing a woman to have an abortion at eight months: Welcome to 21st century China

‘This week, a series of panicked text messages was published by an online newspaper.

They were sent by an eight months pregnant woman in southwest China and spoke of her being pressured into an illegal late-term abortion so that her husband would not lose his job.

The woman in question, known only by her surname Chen, already has an 11-year-old daughter. Under China’s current version of the one child policy, she and her husband do not meet the criteria to have a second baby (both parents have to be only children themselves).

If their second child is born, Chen’s police officer husband would be sacked, in line with rules that specifically apply to public servants as upholders of Chinese law.

The news report revealed that Mrs Chen had found out that she was pregnant earlier this year and wanted to keep the baby. The screenshots of her text messages begin by saying that her husband’s work unit had found out about her pregnancy and that his boss had visited their home to convince her to abort the baby so that his husband could keep his job.

“I can’t resist any more, his unit gives [us] pressure and then let us self-willingly go and have an induced birth”, one message read.

The induced birth in question refers to a late-stage abortion, followed by a medically induced still birth.’

See:

Forcing a woman to have an abortion at eight months: Welcome to 21st century China

Monday 4th May 2015- The Guardian: Pregnant 10-year-old rape victim denied abortion by Paraguayan authorities

‘Paraguayan authorities have ruled out abortion for a pregnant 10-year-old girl who was allegedly raped by her stepfather, unless she develops complications that put her life in danger.

Despite a plea from the girl’s mother and an international outcry, senior medical officials in Asunción told the Guardian that more than 22 weeks into the pregnancy, there are no health risks that would allow doctors to circumvent the Catholic country’s stringent anti-abortion laws.

“Right now, there is no reason to interrupt the pregnancy,” Lida Sosa, director of healthcare programs at the ministry of public health and wellness, said. “In fact, given the stage of the pregnancy, it’s even more dangerous for the girl to undergo a procedure [to abort] without a well-considered medical, obstetrical evaluation.”’

‘After doctors revealed the girl was pregnant, her mother asked them to perform an abortion, but this is forbidden in Paraguay unless the pregnancy has life-threatening complications.

The girl was taken to a shelter and her mother was imprisoned on 27 April and accused of failing in her duty of care. A judge is considering a further charge of being an accomplice in the rape. The stepfather is on the run.’

See:

Pregnant 10-year-old rape victim denied abortion by Paraguayan authorities

Friday 20th December 2013- The Guardian: The Spanish government approves restrictive abortion law despite opposition

Deliberations regarding Spain’s abortion legislation has finally been settled despite tremendous opposition, saying that the procedure I permitted up until the 14th week of pregnancy, but ‘Justice minister Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón said on Friday that abortion will only be allowed in the case of rape or when there is a serious mental or physical health risk to the mother. Accredited fetal deformities that would endanger a child’s life if born will also be accepted. He said 16- and 17-year-olds will once again have to obtain permission from their parents to have an abortion’.

Related articles

• Spain government approves restrictive abortion law despite opposition (theguardian.com)
• Spain approves new restrictive abortion law (telegraph.co.uk)