Dangerous so-called abortion reversal treatment offered to women ‘by anti-abortion groups in UK’

‘There is also a very real risk of haemorrhage from using these medications. The fact that anti-abortion groups are encouraging women down this path demonstrates that they do not care about women,’ says expert

Maya Oppenheim, Women’s Correspondent
March 25, 2021

Dangerous so-called abortion reversal treatment is being offered to women by anti-abortion groups in the UK, healthcare professionals have said.

The warning comes after an undercover investigation conducted by Open Democracy revealed advocates of abortion pill reversal treatment claimed at least 60 women in Britain requested it in the first half of last year.

Continued: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/abortion-reversal-treatment-women-anti-abortion-groups-b1822583.html

Malta – Over 200 reach out to Abortion Support Network since 2019

Abortion Support Network founder Mara Clarke: people requested information on abortion clinics, reputable online providers of medical abortion pills as well as funding to travel abroad

12 February 2021

by Laura Calleja

Over 200 people have contacted the Abortion Support Network (ASN) since the NGO
expanded its services to Malta, ASN founder Mara Clarke revealed.

Since expanding its services to Malta back in February 2019, people had
contacted the NGO for information about abortion clinics, reputable online
providers of medical abortion pills, funding to help with the costs of abortion
and travel, and logistical support.

Continued: https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/107657/over_200_reach_out_to_abortion_support_network_since_2019#.YCan8WhKhPY

Ireland – ’Travelling for an abortion is always hard, but now it is just unbelievably difficult’

Women with unwanted pregnancies are finding Covid-19 a major obstacle to keeping their lives on track, writes Ali Bracken

Ali Bracken
February 07 2021

An unwanted pregnancy was not something Aoife had anticipated having to deal with during lockdown. But somehow, at the end of November, she found herself sitting alone in her Dublin apartment, looking incredulously at the pregnancy test results. She initially didn't believe it. So she took another test, and then a third. Finally she was forced to accept the reality.

"I was pregnant in the middle of a pandemic. And I did not want to be," she recalls. "For me, this was the worst news. It also came at the most emotionally challenging time of my life.

Continued: https://www.independent.ie/world-news/coronavirus/travelling-for-an-abortion-is-always-hard-but-now-it-is-just-unbelievably-difficult-40060420.html

07.02.2021

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Covid: Locked-down women turn to pills amid Malta abortion ban

Catholic Malta has the strictest ban on abortion in the EU, but during the pandemic more Maltese women have been ordering abortion pills from abroad, unable to travel because of the lockdown.

By Sophia Smith-Galer, BBC World Service
January 8, 2021

Veronica - not her real name - was among them. "It was a big burden for me. I already have two kids with learning difficulties. I came off the pill, as the doctor suggested I switch to an IUD for health reasons. I was waiting for the appointment, but Covid came and cancelled all the hospital appointments."

Not long after that Veronica got pregnant. "I had to decide what is best for me and the children," she says. "The best for my health, the best financially… plus the father immediately told me to abort."

Continued: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55579339

Abortion Without Borders helps more than 5,000 people in Poland in first year

Celebrates with billboards advertising their service in Warsaw

Thursday, December 10, 2020, Warsaw
Aborcja Bez Granic / Abortion Without Borders

Abortion Without Borders helps more than 5,000 people in Poland in first year; celebrates with billboards advertising their service in Warsaw.

The Abortion Without Borders initiative has helped more than 5,000 people in Poland since its launch one year ago. The group has provided pregnancy options counselling, information about safe abortion with pills in Poland, and funding and practical support for abortion outside Poland. To celebrate, the group has engaged billboards in Warsaw advertising their organisation and will hold a press conference in Warsaw at 11 am local time. In their first year, Abortion Without Borders has:

Continued: https://womenhelp.org/en/page/1265/abortion-without-borders-helps-more-than-5-000-people-in-poland-in

Women struggle to access abortion as pandemic adds to hurdles in Europe

By Catarina Demony
NOVEMBER 16, 2020

LISBON (Reuters) - Helplines across Europe have reported higher demand for their services as the coronavirus pandemic adds to the hurdles many women face to access abortion.

While abortion is legal in most of Europe, some women have struggled to get appointments in public health systems overwhelmed by the pandemic. Others could not escape abusive partners because of lockdowns, non-governmental organisations and some women who chose to have an abortion told Reuters.

Continued: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-europe-abortion/women-struggle-to-access-abortion-as-pandemic-adds-to-hurdles-in-europe-idUSKBN27W11P

‘Traumatized’ Poles look abroad after abortion ruling

Anna Maria Jakubek and Isabel Guigui
Agence France-Presse Warsaw and Berlin
Wed, November 11, 2020

Abortion charities are reporting a sharp increase in the number of Polish women turning to them for help after a constitutional court ruling last month to tighten legislation.

For Ciocia Basia (Aunt Basia), a Berlin-based group helping Polish women with abortions in Germany, the ruling worsens a situation already complicated by the pandemic.

Continued: https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/11/11/traumatized-poles-look-abroad-after-abortion-ruling-.html

Polish hospitals begin turning away women seeking abortions

Institutions appear to enforce controversial ban despite legislation not yet taking effect

Hannah Summers
Fri 30 Oct 2020

Hospitals in Poland have been turning away women seeking abortions even though a court ruling that has instituted a near-total ban on terminations has not yet taken effect.

The ban, which outlaws one of the three narrow exceptions under which abortion is still permitted – that of severe foetal defects – has sparked huge protests in Poland.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/30/polish-hospitals-begin-turning-away-women-seeking-abortions

Abortion Without Borders: a bold, feminist reply to Poland’s draconian laws

Meet the women across Europe who are resisting threats, both old and new, to reproductive rights in Poland.

Claudia Torrisi
28 September 2020

“It was the most incredible, amazing experience of my life,” the veteran women’s rights activist Mara Clarke told me. “It was totally insane. But also really wonderful. And proof that sisters and siblings can get shit done when they want to.”

In December 2019, three months before coronavirus was declared a global pandemic, a group of women from across Europe launched a bold, feminist response to Poland’s draconian anti-abortion laws: Abortion Without Borders.

Continued: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/abortion-without-borders-a-bold-feminist-reply-to-polands-draconian-laws/

UK – Abortions are for everyone – it’s time for fully inclusive services

The idea that abortion is always a clear choice is far too simplistic and minimises the experiences of lots of those seeking abortion care

Annabel Sowemimo
July 5, 2020

A conversation on how we think about abortion access and how inclusive our services are is long over due. For far too long, the abortion movement has championed access for all those that require abortion care but with little acknowledgement of the wider structures that govern our reproductive health.

While it is estimated that a quarter of all pregnancies end in abortion – the idea that abortion is always a clear choice is far too simplistic and minimises the experiences of lots of those seeking abortion care. Recent Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) data revealed that black women are more likely to report a consecutive abortion compared to their white and Asian counterparts.

Continued: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/abortion-inclusive-reproductive-rights-transgender-black-women-a9602181.html

05.07.2020