Colombia was close to legalizing abortion. Instead, a top court kept restrictions in place.

Colombia was close to legalizing abortion. Instead, a top court kept restrictions in place.

By Miriam Berger
March 3, 2020

Colombia’s constitutional court ruled Monday to keep the country’s abortion restrictions in place, dashing the hopes of activists pushing for a decision that could have made it the first and most populous state in Latin America to legalize abortions during the first 16 weeks of a pregnancy.

The decision “was a missed opportunity to stand on the right side of history to provide Colombian women and girls safe access to abortion,” human rights lawyer Paula Avila-Guillen said in a statement. She described the current law as “poorly regulated and rarely implemented,” such that for “women who have been victims of sexual abuse or face economic barriers, access to abortion is almost impossible, which puts their lives at risk.

Continued: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/03/03/colombia-was-close-legalizing-abortion-instead-top-court-kept-restrictions-place/