Burner phones, aliases, code words: The secret networks that women use to circumvent Honduras’ abortion ban

MAY 20, 2023
Associated Press

Inside a little wooden house among the pine and oak forests of western Honduras' coffee-growing mountains, a woman opened a tiny package of pills, delivered to a nearby town. She didn't know it, but the medication had more than likely entered the country hidden in an activist's suitcase, from Mexico.

The woman, 27, was confident in her decision to have an abortion, but in the moment, she panicked. She knew she was breaking national law banning all abortions and could be prosecuted. Even more, she feared medical complications, or her religious family finding out.

Continued: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/burner-phones-aliases-code-words-how-secret-networks-help-women-circumvent-honduras-abortion-ban/


The informal networks resisting Honduras’s abortion ban

The informal networks resisting Honduras's abortion ban
Through hotlines and clinics, activists and health experts are trying to change the stigma associated with abortion.

Anna-Cat Brigida
July 12, 2019

Tegucigalpa, Honduras - At 22 years old, Ana Padilla was certain of one thing: she did not want to be a mother. So when she found out she was pregnant six years ago, she frantically called a friend to see if she knew how to get an abortion, which is illegal under all circumstances in Honduras. The friend calmed her nerves and gave her the phone number of someone she knew who clandestinely sold mifepristone and misoprostol, pills used for at-home abortions.

"I was desperate in that moment," says Padilla, adding that the experience of buying the pills was "mysterious", like a drug deal.

Continued: https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/informal-networks-resisting-honduras-abortion-ban-190712162754747.html


Life or Death Choices for Women Living Under Honduras’ Abortion Ban

Life or Death Choices for Women Living Under Honduras’ Abortion Ban
Women Tell Their Stories

Amy Braunschweiger, Senior Web Communications Manager
Margaret Wurth, Senior Researcher, Children's Rights Division
June 6, 2019

Lorena (a pseudonym) was arrested after having a miscarriage on suspicion of having an abortion. She’s facing criminal charges. © 2019 Amy Braunschweiger for Human Rights Watch

The calls to La Línea almost always came from panicked women, often crying. “Please answer me!” they begged. “Don’t keep me waiting!” Many said they were calling for a “friend.” All were desperate to know the same thing, forbidden by law in Honduras: how to end an unwanted pregnancy safely.

Continued: https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/06/06/life-or-death-choices-women-living-under-honduras-abortion-ban