Romania: abortion, mission (almost) impossible

In Romania, having an abortion has become increasingly difficult. Under the pressure of the Church and pro-life NGOs – and with the complicity of the state – women are losing this fundamental right.

04/07/2022
Florentin Cassonet

Kai, 22, tells her story sitting at the desk in her small student room on the outskirts of Bucharest. After growing up in South Africa, she returned to her homeland in 2017 to study veterinary medicine. Last summer she found herself in a young man's apartment after a night in which she and her friends had been drinking. She had passed out. When she regained consciousness, she was naked on the bed of the guy who had invited her, in pain. "His room-mates started clapping when they saw me. I left in a hurry". A few days later Kai realised she was pregnant. A friend then advised her to go to the police. But first she went to the guy who raped her and told him she was pregnant and she needed money to have an abortion". He replied: 'I'll give you the money if you blow me'. I slapped him, went home, and called the police”.

Continued: https://www.balcanicaucaso.org/eng/Areas/Romania/Romania-abortion-mission-almost-impossible-219108

Contemporary abortion restrictions and cautionary tales from history

Carla Ramazan
Dec 18, 2020
Reno Gazette Journal

Nearly 20 years ago, my aunt died obtaining an unsafe abortion in our home country, Romania, because federal laws made it impossible to safely terminate a pregnancy. Today, the United States is bordering on a reality where abortion is inaccessible, if not illegal, especially in Republican-controlled states such as Arkansas. This year, a federal court ruled that a variety of first-of-their-kind abortion regulations can be implemented in Arkansas. This decision will push those who seek abortion-care into dark situations.

Beginning this August, doctors in Arkansas
are prohibited from performing dilation and evacuation abortions on patients,
and consequences for not complying include up to six years in prison. Doctors
will also be required to notify local law enforcement when patients under the
age of 17 seek an abortion and will be forced to involve family members of the
patient in deciding how to dispose of fetal tissue remains.

Continued: https://www.rgj.com/story/opinion/voices/2020/12/19/contemporary-abortion-restrictions-and-cautionary-tales-history-ramazan/3953803001/

USA – What Happens When We Ban Abortion?

What Happens When We Ban Abortion?
If the United States succeeds at revoking women’s rights to abortion, the social climate will be reminiscent of another country that made this attempt in the 1960s: Romania.

Wanida Lewis
Sep 25, 2019

The battle over women’s reproductive rights in the United States is not new. Since the Supreme Court’s landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, the lines have been drawn between pro-choice and pro-life advocates. These positions have been entrenched in US politics for decades, but have taken a sharp turn under the current Trump administration. Though data show that restricting abortion access hurts women in the workforce, the president has vigorously pursued regressive policies, contrary to his stated intentions to support economic growth for women.

In fact, these antiquated decisions will not only jeopardize the prosperity of women but also their health and safety, especially for low-income women and women of color. If the United States succeeds at revoking women’s right to abortion, the social climate will be reminiscent of another country that made this attempt in the 1960s: Romania.

Continued: https://www.fairobserver.com/region/north_america/womens-rights-abortion-health-trump-administration-us-news-17161/