How will laws against abortion be enforced? Other countries offer chilling examples

In Argentina, midwives were prosecuted. In Brazil, clinics were raided. In Rwanda, hundreds of women went to jail

By GILLIAN KANE
MAY 25, 2022

Within the next month it is very likely the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade and eliminate the federal constitutional right to an abortion. When that happens, dormant trigger laws in many states will immediately go into effect and abortion will become a crime. Because abortion will be regulated at the state level, enforcement and penalties will vary greatly. Kentucky, South Dakota, North Dakota, Tennessee, South Carolina and Missouri are just some of the states that would make providing an abortion a felony, with penalties including jail time up to 20 years. Other states, too impatient to wait for the court decision, have already moved to increase penalties for either having or providing an abortion. Louisiana attempted to classify abortion as a homicide, although lawmakers there have since walked back the effort. Texas is uniquely punitive, criminalizing abortion after six weeks and incentivizing enforcement through the private sector by offering bounties of $10,000 cash to deputized ordinary citizens who can sue anyone involved in providing an abortion.

Continued: https://www.salon.com/2022/05/25/how-will-laws-against-abortion-be-enforced-other-countries-offer-chilling-examples/

Abortion: The double torture of a girl in Bolivia

Abortion: The double torture of a girl in Bolivia

Written by George Holan
December 3, 2021

The ordeal of an 11-year-old girl who became pregnant after repeated rapes by a relative has given visibility, albeit fleetingly, to the enormous obstacles that stand in the way of access to legal abortion in Bolivia.

After weeks of disseminating the case in the local media and thanks to the intervention of the Ombudsman’s Office, the girl was finally able to terminate her pregnancy on November 6. Since then, the subject has disappeared from public discussion, as if it had been an exceptional case.

Continued: https://plainsmenpost.com/2021/12/03/abortion-the-double-torture-of-a-girl-in-bolivia-opinion/

11-year-old whose pregnancy ignited a debate in Bolivia granted an abortion

by Maite Fernández Simon
Nov 9, 2021

An 11-year-old girl, whose pregnancy reignited debate about the legality of abortion in Bolivia, moved forward with the procedure Saturday after receiving official approval, government officials told reporters.

Eduardo del Castillo, Bolivia’s government minister, said in a news conference on Sunday that “the girl discontinued her pregnancy,” “in accordance with current laws and what has been decided by the judicial authorities in our country,” according to the EFE, a Spanish news agency. She has been released from the hospital and is being monitored by the children’s ombudsman in Yapacaní, in the Santa Cruz province.

Continued: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/11/09/bolivia-abortion-debate-pregnant-girl/

09.11.2021

Featured

News

Ana Paola García Villagomez

Bolivia: Protests erupt and church criticised for interfering with 11-year-old girl’s abortion

Church authorities reportedly promised to help the family, who then decided not to allow the abortion to go ahead.

Saturday 30 October 2021

The Bolivian government has criticised the Catholic Church for interfering in an 11-year-old girl's abortion.

The girl became pregnant after allegedly being raped by her step-grandfather and, after her pregnancy was discovered at 21 weeks, her family requested permission for her to have an abortion.

Continued: https://news.sky.com/story/bolivia-protests-erupt-and-church-criticised-for-interfering-with-11-year-old-girls-abortion-12454863

30.10.2021

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News

Bolivian Episcopal Conference

Bolivia: fate of 11-year-old girl raped by family member sparks abortion debate

Religious groups seek to force girl to give birth as intervention of the Catholic church questioned

Dan Collyns in Lima
Fri 29 Oct 2021

The fate of an 11-year-old girl who became pregnant after being raped by a family member has unleashed a fierce debate between human rights activists and the Catholic church in Bolivia, as religious groups seek to force her to complete the pregnancy and give birth.

The girl was impregnated after being repeatedly raped and suffering other sexual abuse by the father of her stepfather in the town of Yapacaní, in Bolivia’s eastern Santa Cruz region.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2021/oct/29/bolivia-11-year-old-girl-rape-catholic-church

Rape and pregnancy of 11-year-old reignites abortion debate in Bolivia

By Maite Fernández Simon
Oct 29, 2021

The case of an 11-year-old who is 22 weeks pregnant has reignited the debate around abortion in Bolivia.

The girl had been in the care of her 61-year-old step-grandfather, who allegedly raped her, in the town of Yapacaní, in the Santa Cruz province, for more than five months, while her mother and stepfather were in La Paz for work.

Continued: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/10/29/abortion-bolivia-girl-catholic-church/

Girl, 11, who fell pregnant ‘after she was raped by her 61-year-old grandfather’ in Bolivia will not terminate the child after her family refused abortion

By CHRIS MATTHEWS FOR MAILONLINE
25 October 2021

The family of an 11-year-old girl who became pregnant after her 61-year-old step-grandfather allegedly raped her has refused to let her have an abortion.

The young girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is more than five months pregnant.

She was allegedly raped by her stepfather's parent, who is half a century older than her, in the Bolivian town of Yapacaní, near Santa Cruz, in the centre of the South American country.

Continued: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10128519/Girl-11-pregnant-61-year-old-grandfather-raped-Bolivia-refused-abortion-family.html

25.10.2021

Keeping women’s health essential despite Covid-19 shortages

Keeping women's health essential despite Covid-19 shortages

Opinion by Anu Kumar
Thu May 7, 2020
(Video: Fear, panic as women navigate pregnancy during a pandemic, 02:59)

(CNN)The world is changing daily as a result of Covid-19. Like millions of people, I now have a virtual workday. I am fortunate -- I'm safe and comfortable at home with my family in North Carolina.

Although living socially distanced and not knowing when life will return to normal is a struggle, I am comforted by the knowledge of the frontline workers I work with around the world working to alleviate some of the harm being inflicted on those living in dense and underserved communities.

Continued: https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/06/opinions/covid-19-womens-health-abortion-access-kumar/

Latin America lagging behind on women’s rights

Latin America lagging behind on women’s rights

By Hugo Sánchez and Julia R. Arévalo
euroefe.es | translated by Freya Kirk
Feb 19, 2018

Imprisoned for having an abortion, forced to keep a child born out of rape, pushed to commit suicide: women still pay a heavy price in Latin America, where several countries’ legislation greatly restricts abortion. EURACTIV’s partner Euroefe reports.

Women’s rights in South America were the main issue during a conference before the 10th Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly (EUROLAT), held last September in El Salvador. El Salvador is now ranked as the most violent country in the world, mainly due to gang activities.

Continued: https://www.euractiv.com/section/development-policy/news/latin-america-lagging-behind-on-womens-rights/

Meet Bolivia’s champions for abortion rights Their grassroots movement broke the silence on the need for safe, legal abortion

Meet Bolivia’s champions for abortion rights Their grassroots movement broke the silence on the need for safe, legal abortion
By Ipas
December 18th, 2017

On Dec. 15, Bolivia made history by expanding provisions for legal abortion. Under the newly revised penal code, women and girls can now legally access safe abortion in the first eight weeks of pregnancy under a broad range of circumstances.

Historic law change like this doesn’t happen overnight. In Bolivia, a grassroots movement for safe abortion has been building for many years, harnessing the power of leaders from across the country’s diverse population—which has more than 30 indigenous groups. As momentum grew for law reform, leaders formed the Pact for the Decriminalization of Abortion—a grassroots coalition of more than 50 organizations, including Ipas Bolivia.

Continued at source: https://spotlight.ipas.org/meet-bolivias-champions-for-abortion-rights