Northern Ireland Is About to Reform Its Abortion Law – Now What?

Northern Ireland Is About to Reform Its Abortion Law – Now What?
If its government doesn't reconvene by October 21st, its draconian law will be tossed out the window. Activists are counting down the days.

by Mary McGill
18 October 2019

With just a few days to go until October 21st, it is almost certain that Northern Ireland’s draconian law against abortion will be reformed. The political situation in Northern Ireland is complex. The region’s devolved government has been suspended for over two years. For campaigners fighting for equal rights issues like abortion, this stalemate has been frustrating.

That is, until July of this year, when Westminster issued a ruling paving the way for the liberalisation of the region’s abortion legislation, provided Northern Ireland’s government does not reconvene before October 21st. Although there are fears that Boris Johnson will use abortion in Northern Ireland as a bargaining tactic in Brexit negotiations, at this late stage reform is unlikely to be derailed

Continued: https://www.vice.com/en_in/article/mbmkbb/northern-ireland-abortion-law-reform

Tens of thousands march for ban on abortions in Slovakia

Tens of thousands march for ban on abortions in Slovakia

Issued on: 22/09/2019
David W. Cerny, Reuters

Tens of thousands marched in Slovakia's capital on Sunday calling for a total ban on abortions in the predominantly Catholic central European country.

Abortion laws in Slovakia are relatively liberal compared to those in countries like Poland or Malta, which have among the strictest laws in the European Union and often allow them only in cases like rape.

Continued: https://www.france24.com/en/20190922-march-ban-abortions-slovakia-catholic-conservative

22.09.2019

News

abortion criminalization

She helped her 15 year old get an abortion. Now she’s facing charges in Northern Ireland

She helped her 15 year old get an abortion. Now she's facing charges in Northern Ireland

By Haley Ott
June 26, 2019

London -- A woman is facing criminal charges in Northern Ireland for getting her 15-year-old daughter abortion pills to end an unwanted pregnancy in 2013. The woman's lawyer says the police were alerted after the daughter, who was in an abusive relationship, told a therapist she had taken the pills. The woman's legal team is challenging the prosecution.

Abortion is against the law in Northern Ireland except when a pregnant woman's health is at risk of permanent harm. There are no exceptions in cases of rape or incest. Women who have illegal abortions can face up to life in prison if caught, and medical professionals are required to report anyone who has had one to the authorities.

Continued: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/abortion-northern-ireland-mother-of-15-year-old-facing-criminal-charges/

Addressing stigma while moving a national campaign: Spotlight on South Korea

Addressing stigma while moving a national campaign: Spotlight on South Korea

Posted June 18, 2019
by inroads Comms, with Na Young

In this article, inroads member, Na Young, of the The Sexual and Reproductive Rights Forum and the Joint Action for Reproductive Justice in South Korea shares with us in detail what it took to generate a people’s movement to get rid of an anti-abortion law and the stigma-busting that is still ongoing.

1) How has abortion stigma shown up around the law historically in Korea?

Anti-abortion law was first made in Korea during the Japanese occupation. After Independence and the Korean War, the first assembly decided to keep the punishment clauses on abortion made by the Japanese government. According to this law, women who get an abortion can spend up to a year in prison or be fined up to 2 million won (about 1,850 dollars). Doctors, midwives and any healthcare workers who provide abortions can face up to two years in prison.

Continued: http://makeinroads.org/making-inroads/2019/June/addressing-stigma-while-moving-a-national-campaign-spotlight-on-south-korea

From Phoebe Waller-Bridge To Sharon Horgan, Celebs Are Calling On The Conservative Party Leadership Candidates To Repeal Northern Ireland’s Archaic Abortion Law

From Phoebe Waller-Bridge To Sharon Horgan, Celebs Are Calling On The Conservative Party Leadership Candidates To Repeal Northern Ireland's Archaic Abortion Law

'Be the Prime Minister who shows they trust women. Be the Prime Minister who believes in treating all women equally. Above all be the Prime Minster who will not ignore us...'

BY Grazia
June 17, 2019

Dozens of celebrities, including Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Sharon Horgan, Hayley Atwell and Scarlet Curtis have joined forces with London Irish Abortion Rights Campaign to ask the Conservative Party Leadership candidates - one of whom will become Prime Minister next month - to pledge to hold a vote to repeal the 1861 legislation that criminalises abortion in Northern Ireland in almost all circumstances. It is the only part of the UK where this is the case, and in 2018 the Republic Of Ireland voted to decriminalise abortion in a referendum.

Continued: https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/real-life/phoebe-waller-bridge-northern-ireland-abortion-law/

A Century Old “Heartbeat Bill” In The Philippines

By Featuresdesk (ICG) on June 12, 2019

Earlier this May, the US signed a law called the “Heartbeat Bill” which according to news, seeks to make abortion illegal as soon as the fetus’ heartbeat is detectable. In most cases, this is at the six-week mark of a pregnancy – before many women even know they are pregnant. This law has no exceptions for rape or incest.

Here in the Philippines there are facts on abortion you should know about that are similar to “Heartbeat Bill”.

Continued: http://pageone.ph/a-century-old-heartbeat-bill-in-the-philippines/

12.06.2019

Commentary

Featured

abortion criminalization

Honduras abortion misery a ‘frightening preview’ of America’s future – study

Honduras abortion misery a 'frightening preview' of America's future – study
Reproductive rights pushback could leave American women facing same life-or-death choices as Hondurans, say researchers

Karen McVeigh
Fri 7 Jun 2019

One woman handcuffed by police after suffering a miscarriage, another forced to bear her rapist’s child. A doctor who risks imprisonment to end pregnancies that threaten the lives of patients. The reality of healthcare in Honduras provides a “frightening preview” of what could happen in America if the pushback on reproductive rights continues, Human Rights Watch has warned.

Researchers from the organisation spoke of the “enormous suffering” of women and girls in Honduras, where there is a total ban on abortion in all circumstances.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/jun/07/honduras-abortion-misery-frightening-preview-of-america-future-study

Honduras: Abortion Ban’s Dire Consequences

Honduras: Abortion Ban’s Dire Consequences
Arrests, Criminal Charges, Health Issues, Bearing Rapist’s Child

June 6, 2019

(New York) – Honduras’ total ban on abortion in all circumstances puts women and girls in danger and violates their rights, Human Rights Watch said today, releasing a web feature on the topic. Abortion in Honduras is illegal in all circumstances, including rape and incest, when a woman’s life is in danger, and when the fetus will not survive outside the womb.

The web feature, “Life or Death Choices for Women Living Under Honduras’ Abortion Ban,” shares stories of Honduran women confronting the cruel effects of the abortion law. They include a woman forced to bear her rapist’s child; a woman facing jail after having a miscarriage; women who experienced complications from clandestine abortions; a pro-choice pastor who has faced death threats for her activism; a doctor who cannot always act in her patients’ best interests; and women who share information about safe abortion in secret through an anonymous phone line.

Continued: https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/06/06/honduras-abortion-bans-dire-consequences

Honduras – ‘I Can No Longer Continue to Live Here’

‘I Can No Longer Continue to Live Here’
What’s driving so many Honduran women to the U.S. border? The reality is worse than you’ve heard.

By JILL FILIPOVIC
June 07, 2019

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — In a small town tucked in the hills outside Tegucigalpa, there is a stuffed gray bunny rabbit that knows a little girl’s secrets. “I tell him all my things,” she says. “About how I’m doing, and when I feel sad.” She feels sad a lot lately. “I start thinking about things that I shouldn’t be thinking,” she says.

There are a lot of things she shouldn’t be thinking. She is 12 years old and just weeks away from giving birth to a baby.

Continued: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/06/07/domestic-violence-immigration-asylum-caravan-honduras-central-america-227086

Manila’s Abortion Ban Is Killing Women

Manila’s Abortion Ban Is Killing Women
Roughly 1,000 women in the Philippines die every year from lack of safe terminations. Others go to jail.

By Nick Aspinwall
May 29, 2019

Several U.S. states including Alabama, Georgia, and Missouri have recently passed draconian abortion laws. In Alabama, the new rules effectively ban abortion unless the life of the mother or the fetus is at risk and make no exceptions for rape or incest. The law has drawn damning comparisons to countries such as Bangladesh and Romania.

BBut the most relevant example may be a country whose religious and political history is closely tied to the United States. In the Philippines, a former U.S. colony, abortion has been banned entirely for over a century. Philippine law mandates prison terms of up to six years for people who have abortions and for anyone who assists in the procedure. Arrests and convictions of women and abortion providers are commonly reported in local media, and United Nations committees repeatedly note that the abortion ban disproportionately harms socioeconomically disadvantaged women and members of other vulnerable groups. In practice, abortion is allowed in cases where the pregnant person’s life is at risk, but no law explicitly states this.

Continued: https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/05/29/manilas-abortion-ban-is-killing-women/

29.05.2019