How the grisly discovery of a ‘foetus mortuary’ re-shaped Thailand’s abortion laws

Years after the country’s abortion legislation shifted, entrenched attitudes still obstruct access in the Buddhist country

Sarah Newey, and Pear Maneechote
15 March 2024

The stench revealed the grisly secret. Wafting through the temple in southern Bangkok, the terrible smell led to the mortuary – and the grim discovery of more than 2,000 foetuses, wrapped in plastic bags and at various stages of decomposition.

The hidden remains were awaiting cremation, the final stage in an underground abortion network in Thailand’s capital. But a broken furnace disrupted the process for months, possibly longer, until the smell grew so potent it was impossible to hide.

Continued: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/women-and-girls/abortion-laws-buddhist-monks-foetus-mortuary-thailand-asia/


In France, abortion rights and hijab bans highlight a double standard on women’s rights

March 14, 2024
Roshan Arah Jahangeer

The French parliament recently voted in favour of enshrining the right to abortion into the country’s constitution. While crowds celebrated outside, the slogan “my body my choice” was projected onto the Eiffel Tower in giant letters.

Although concerns about barriers and access still remain, women in France are now guaranteed the right to an abortion up to 14 weeks into their pregnancy, mirroring Spain but still well behind Sweden’s 18 weeks and the 24 weeks allowed in The Netherlands.

Continued: https://theconversation.com/in-france-abortion-rights-and-hijab-bans-highlight-a-double-standard-on-womens-rights-225418


Kamala Harris puts abortion front and center with visit to Minnesota clinic

Vice-president toured Planned Parenthood facility signaling issue will be key in election

Carter Sherman
Thu 14 Mar 2024

Kamala Harris visited a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on Thursday, becoming what is believed to be the first vice-president ever to do so.

Harris stopped by a clinic in Minnesota, a state where abortion remains legal following the overturning of Roe v Wade, as part of her nationwide tour to highlight the impact of Roe’s downfall. Harris also toured the clinic, which remained open to patients as the nation’s first female vice-president made her historic visit.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/14/kamala-harris-visits-abortion-clinic-minnesota


Khamenei’s Failing Hand: Abortion Rates Defy Iran’s Population Policy

March 13, 2024
Majid Mohammadi

A notable paradox in population dynamics has emerged recently in Iran.

On one front, the government aims to increase the population by two-fold – and as soon as possible. To achieve this, it has severely restricted abortion and contraception, and simultaneously promotes pregnancy and childbearing.

But, year after year, individuals are instead opting to have fewer children, standing in opposition to the government's ambitious population policy. In essence, Iranians have effectively countered Khamenei's population policy – and defeated its goals.

Continued: https://www.iranintl.com/en/202403135943


Abortion rights are featuring in this year’s European election campaign in a way we’ve not seen before

March 13, 2024
Magdalena Frennhoff Larsén

The recent landmark decision in France to inscribe the right to abortion in the constitution serves to protect the law that first legalised abortion in the country in 1975. This law – the so-called Veil law – was championed by Simone Veil, one of France’s most admired and respected political figures, and an icon of the women’s rights movement.

In 1974, Veil, a magistrate who had been asked by French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing to serve as health minister in his government, delivered a momentous speech. She presented the public health case for the decriminalisation of abortion to the National Assembly, which at the time was composed almost entirely of men.

Continued: https://theconversation.com/abortion-rights-are-featuring-in-this-years-european-election-campaign-in-a-way-weve-not-seen-before-225714


How the US Christian Right Funds Anti-Abortion Activities Abroad

Right-wing US groups have spotted an opportunity to ramp up their activities since Roe v. Wade’s repeal.

by KATY FALLON, pictures by JNO.SKINNER
MARCH 13, 2024

In April 2023, Janet K. Museveni, Uganda’s first lady, published a photo on social media that rang serious alarm bells for advocates of reproductive and LGBTQ rights. The photo sparked concern because of a specific person in it: Sharon Slater, who heads the US nonprofit Family Watch International. The organization describes its work as “strengthening the family,” but the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has designated it as a hate group for its efforts to “further anti-LBGT and anti-choice stances.”

The SPLC is one of several rights groups and monitors that have called attention to the work of Slater and Family Watch International. More worrisome still, the photo of Museveni and Slater came shortly after Uganda’s parliament passed harsh anti-gay legislation that allows for a life-sentence for adults convicted of engaging in consensual, same-sex intercourse. Family Watch International did not reply to a request for comment, but the group has previously denied claims it had lobbied or advocated for the bill.

Continued: https://inkstickmedia.com/how-the-us-christian-right-funds-anti-abortion-activities-abroad/


Misogyny in discussions about legal abortion in Brazil

In Rio de Janeiro, a bill guaranteeing humane treatment of women seeking an abortion procedure was defeated

Luciana Boiteux, Translated by: Ana Paula Rocha
13 March 2024

We welcomed March with France's parliament approving the right to abortion in the country's constitution: 780 votes in favor and 72 against. A few days earlier, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, a bill aimed at guaranteeing the humane treatment of women seeking legal abortion – that is, what is already provided for in Brazil’s Penal Code – was defeated: 32 votes against and only eight in favor.

The bill, proposed by Marielle Franco, had been awaiting a vote since 2017, and aimed to municipalize a program that already existed as a technical standard of the Ministry of Health.

Continued: https://www.brasildefato.com.br/2024/03/13/misogyny-in-discussions-about-legal-abortion-in-brazil


‘Idaho’s seen as a war zone’: the lone abortion activist defying militias and the far right

Jen Jackson Quintano is her region’s only abortion rights organizer. Faced with a ‘culture of silence’, she’s platforming women – and changing minds

by Cassidy Randall
Tue 12 Mar 2024

Last January, Jen Jackson Quintano stepped into a theater in Sandpoint, a tiny city in northern Idaho, to debut a production that could best be described as The Vagina Monologues meets The Moth – a night of Idahoans sharing stories about their own reproductive agency.

Quintano was nervous. Idaho, where Republicans outnumber Democrats five to one, has one of the most punitive abortion bans in the country. Further, Quintano lives in a region of the state that keeps making national headlines for bold displays of armed intimidation by militia, white supremacists, and Christian nationalists. This was not necessarily a safe place to talk about abortion.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/12/abortion-rights-idaho-stories


Teen Abortion Access Remains Difficult Even in States Where Access is Protected

BY RACHEL JANFAZA
MARCH 11, 2024

A state like Massachusetts is considered a safe haven for abortion in a post-Dobbs America. But a first-of-its-kind report about national abortion access for youth from Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts’ ASPIRE Center for Sexual & Reproductive Health released on Monday called “The Minor Abortion Access Research and Advocacy Project” reveals that there are stark gaps in reproductive health care availability for minors – even in states that have expanded abortion access since the reversal of Roe v. Wade.

The group’s research found that oftentimes, parental involvement laws – which mandate minors’ parental permission before an abortion – or the judicial bypass process – which requires teens to go through the court system if they cannot ask their parents for consent to an abortion – stand between teens under the age of 18 and abortion, hindering young people’s bodily autonomy despite state policies meant to enhance reproductive health care access.

Continued: https://www.teenvogue.com/story/teen-abortion-access-remains-difficult-even-in-states-where-access-is-protected


How To Get An Abortion In Iceland

Published March 11, 2024
Words by Catharine Fulton (The útlendingur’s ongoing guide to getting shit done)

Much like wrangling your annual tax return or figuring out how to register your kid for extra-curriculars, navigating the health care system in Iceland can be tricky and frustrating and, sometimes, rage inducing.

But if there is ever a time when you don’t need the extra stress of research or trial and error it’s when you find yourself pregnant. If you are a pregnant person planning on carrying a foetus to term, then your first stop should be your neighbourhood Heilsugæslan, where you will be paired with a midwife to oversee your care. Nota bene: you are in control, so if you don’t like the care you receive from your assigned midwife, it is your right to request another midwife to take over your care.

Continued: https://grapevine.is/mag/articles/2024/03/11/how-to-get-an-abortion/