South Africa – Abortion is a regular medical procedure, so why do we need a law for it?

With abortion services becoming available through telemedicine and self-managed abortions increasingly gaining traction globally, the relevance and legality of abortion law should be questioned as women demand reproductive justice, and feminists get organising.

By Marion Stevens
14 August 2020

Abortion has always been legal in South Africa, a fact which may surprise many people. The colonial government introduced Roman-Dutch law, which allowed abortions to take place under certain conditions.

The Abortion and Sterilisation Act 2 of 1975 reserved access to abortion for white women, while increasing control over black women’s bodies – all within a population control framework. Under this act, approximately 1,000 white women accessed abortion every year, while the number of black women seeking abortions was not even recorded.

Continued: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2020-08-14-abortion-is-a-regular-medical-procedure-so-why-do-we-need-a-law-for-it/


Challenges for achieving sexual and reproductive justice in South Africa

Challenges for achieving sexual and reproductive justice in South Africa

2 May, 2019
Written by Marion Stevens, Director, Sexual and Reproductive Justice Coalition

Reproductive Justice is defined by three principles: The right to have child; the right not to have a child; and the right to parent children in safe and healthy environments.

Twenty years after the evolution of the concept in the United States, the government of South Africa incorporated the concept of reproductive justice into its thinking. In 2014 the concept was introduced and spoken about locally and globally by the Department of Social Development (DSD)1,which houses the National Population Unit. DSD has incorporated the principles of reproductive justice, and taken the concept of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) further.

continued: http://www.srhm.org/news/challenges-for-achieving-sexual-and-reproductive-justice-in-south-africa/


Abortion providers — the custodians of reproductive justice in South Africa

Abortion providers — the custodians of reproductive justice in South Africa

Marion Stevens
13 March 2019

Sunday 10 March marked Abortion Provider Appreciation Day. These are men and women providing a service many health professionals shun. In South Africa, despite a progressive law, abortion providers continue to face stigma and difficult working conditions.

On 10 March 1993 Dr David Gunn was murdered by an anti-abortion extremist in Florida in the United States (See Appendix below annotating assassinations and violence). Three years later, to honour his life and work, 10 March became the National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers.

Continued: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2019-03-13-abortion-providers-the-custodians-of-reproductive-justice-in-south-africa/