8 January 2016
Abortion Law and Policy News
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December - January 2016
NIGERIA
 
Case of illegal detention and death of woman at hospital heads to High Court of Nigeria
 
30 December 2015
 
A Nigerian hospital illegally detained a woman who could not pay for the maternal health services she received and denied her emergency services later on that led to her death according to a case filed before the High Court of Nigeria today.

In the petition, Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC), with technical support from the Center for Reproductive Rights, is holding Lagos University Teaching Hospital, as well as the hospital's medical director, the Attorney General, and the Ministry of Health, accountable for the ill-treatment and death of Folake Oduyoye. WARDC is seeking a declaration that the detainment was illegal, unconstitutional, and in breach of her rights, along with financial reparations and a public apology.

Said Onyema Afulukwe, senior legal adviser for Africa at the Center for Reproductive Rights: "The High Court of Nigeria must recognize the treatment Folake received as the gross human rights violations that they are, and order systematic changes in all hospitals so women can get essential health care services without fear of being detained, mistreated, and left to die."

Folake Oduyoye was admitted to Lagos University Teaching Hospital on 7 September 2014 due to complications from a caesarean delivery at another hospital on 30 August. After receiving treatment and being discharged on 31 October 2014, she and her husband received an outstanding bill of N 1,382,700. He paid N 300,000 but that was not sufficient for the hospital and they detained Folake, keeping her in a heavily guarded ward that lacked a toilet, electricity or mosquito netting.

She was denied any medical attention because the hospital claimed she had been discharged, yet she needed post-surgical care. Her husband made multiple pleas for her release, assuring that they would pay the remaining balance monthly. But weeks went by, and she started having serious health complications. Their cries for help were ignored and Folake died in the hospital on 13 December 2014 from puerperal sepsis and pneumonia. 

"The illegal detention of women in hospitals is unfair, unconstitutional and contributes to Nigeria's high rate of maternal deaths and pregnancy-related complications," said Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, Executive Director of WARDC. "The government of Nigeria needs to change this criminal practice and provide pregnant women the services and care they deserve."

From: a Center for Reproductive Rights press release

VIETNAM

Second trimester abortion in Vietnam: ban or not ban

by Phan Bich Thuy

28 November 2015

   
For the past 10 years imbalances in sex ratio at birth (SRB) has become a major concern in Vietnam. In order to solve this problem the government has adopted certain policies prohibiting use of technology to diagnose fetal sex thus advocating for gender equality... The belief that banning second trimester abortions would be a solution for imbalances in SRB has raised several arguments in Vietnam. This article highlights the root causes of the issue and discusses measures that can improve the imbalance in SRB.

Why there is an imbalance in SRB?
  • Firstly, son preference is a common phenomenon in Vietnamese culture. Traditionally, men maintain the family lineage, earn for their families, and take care of parents in old age. Although the roles of men and women are changing in the current society, son preference is still a dominant practice in Vietnamese society.
  • Secondly, modern technology is used to identify fetal sex by ultrasound and testing chromosome through amniotic fluid and aborting female fetuses [in the second trimester].
  • Thirdly, the two-child policy influences couples' reproductive decision. If they prefer a son they will try their best to have at least one male child.
Who needs second trimester abortion? According to research by Maria Gallo and Nguyen Cong Nghia (2006) women may need a second trimester abortion for different reasons:
  • 53% second trimester abortion belong to adolescents and young unmarried women.
  • 80% second trimester abortion belong to women who are not aware of their pregnancies before 12 weeks. This group includes women who have irregular menstrual periods such as adolescents, breastfeeding mothers, women on medical treatment, premenopausal women and women with poor knowledge about menstruation and pregnancy.
  • Often women are detected with fetal abnormalities, which leads to their decision to terminate their pregnancies.
  • Some women face difficulties to access early abortion due to their work/study, geographic barrier, or inability to bear abortion cost.
  • Very few women (less than 10%) have reasons for their abortion related to fetal sex.
What are the consequences of banning second trimester abortion?
  • Banning second trimester abortions will stop more than 90% women who are in need of abortion that is not related to son preference.
  • It will increase the number of abandoned babies.
  • Most importantly, it will increase complications and deaths related to unsafe abortion.
How to tackle the root causes of imbalance SRB?
  • Educating and advocating to enhance gender equality. Helping people to recognize the roles of women in families and society. Women should be provided with opportunities to study and work, and have the ability to care for parents in old age.
  • Policies to support families with only daughter/s such as social welfare for elderly parents.
  • Seek to achieve replacement fertility by shifting from the two-child policy to giving the right to individuals and couples to decide freely and responsibly the number of their children.
Gender discrimination in Vietnam militates against girls' education

In conclusion , second trimester abortion is just one aspect of son preference. Banning second trimester abortion is not only an inadequate measure to solve the problem but also leads to serious consequences including increased maternal mortality. Instead, it is imperative to address the root causes of the problem - discrimination against women.
CROATIA

Croatian Constitutional Court to decide on abortion

by  Vedran Pavlic

26 December 2015


 The Women's Network of Croatia has announced that it expected that the Constitutional Court will not accept the proposal of the Croatian Movement for Life, filed 24 years ago, to institute proceedings to review the constitutionality of the law which allows abortion.

The Women's Network sent a letter to the president and members of the Constitutional Court after it received information that the Constitutional Court is ready to discuss the proposal, which was submitted by the Croatian Movement for Life in 1991, to review the constitutionality of the Law on Health Care Measures for the Implementation of the Right to Decide on Childbirth.

The letter reminds the Court that the Law is based on the provisions of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and states that the Convention expresses concern about the impact of religion on the secular character of state and laws. The Women's Network says that it hopes that the Constitutional Court will take into account the Council of Europe resolution "Women and Religions in Europe" and will not allow the call for a ban on abortion rights, which comes from the ranks of the Catholic Church, to affect the constitutional and legal system in Croatia.

"We expect that the Constitutional Court will not accept the proposal to institute proceedings to review the constitutionality of the Law, because Article 3 of the Constitution proclaims gender equality and respect for human rights as one of the highest values of the constitutional system of the Republic of Croatia. Concerned with the increasingly frequent attacks on women's human rights, members of the Women's Network ask the Constitutional Court to examine the effects of the contracts signed between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia, and to prepare a special report on the matter of whether these agreements are in line with the Constitution" , the letter said.
NORTHERN IRELAND

Northern Ireland: the movement to change the law is growing

23 December 2015-7 January 2016

On 23 December, A teenager and her mother who are fighting for women from Northern Ireland to receive free abortions on the National Health Service in Great Britain are to have their case heard at the UK's Supreme Court, in a challenge against a Court of Appeal ruling in July 2015 that went against them.

During the Court of Appeal proceedings, Lord Justice Moore-Bick, Lord Justice Elias and Lord Justice McCombe heard that the case was of considerable importance as an estimated 2,000 women and girls from Northern Ireland - where abortion is illegal apart from in exceptional circumstances - come to England for terminations every year.

The 18-year-old applicant in the case was aged 15 when she made the journey in October 2012 with her mother and was told she had to pay hundreds of pounds for a private termination because she was excluded from free abortion services.

The case was backed by Alliance for Choice, which campaigns to extend legal abortion in Northern Ireland. A date has yet to be fixed for the Supreme Court hearing.

On 5 January 2016, it was reported that medical staff in Northern Ireland are operating in a "climate of fear", worried about the threat of imprisonment if they offer advice to women seeking an abortion, health care leaders said, because doctors and midwives were so alarmed by punitive draft guidelines, which state that health care workers risk life imprisonment for performing an unlawful abortion... Doctors also feel scared to provide information about clinics in England where women could seek an abortion because they are unsure whether giving even this very limited advice is illegal.

Although the guidelines were subsequently withdrawn, doctors say they have had a "chilling effect", making staff very reluctant to provide abortions that might previously have been viewed as standard. New guidance has yet to be published.

Doctors who had previously felt able to provide abortions to women who were carrying fetuses with fatal abnormalities in Northern Ireland say they no longer feel able to help those women; instead they advise them to travel to England for a termination.

Hospital doctors, midwives and GPs all said they found it particularly difficult when women who were having a miscarriage after taking abortion pills bought online came to seek their advice, because of pressure to report anyone who has illegally procured an abortion.

Nurses have also spoken of their anxiety about helping women at A&E departments who are panicking after taking abortion pills bought online. Breedagh Hughes, director for Northern Ireland at the Royal College of Midwives, said: "That's not a good situation to be managing. The midwives are thinking: 'Oh dear God, do I have to report this woman to the police because she is in the middle of a criminal act here?'" Midwives were encouraged not to ask too many questions. Hughes said she understands how potent the sense of fear of prosecution is among medical staff. In 2008 she was interviewed at a police station after telling a newspaper that over the course of her career she had been present at terminations and was not always sure whether the procedures were lawful or not. "Four hours of questioning was not pleasant," she said. She was asked by police to supply names both of the patients and of staff she had worked with but refused to comply. The investigation was dropped owing to insufficient evidence...

The movement to change the law is growing. In the aftermath of the High Court ruling in November 2015 that Northern Ireland's almost outright ban on abortion breaches the human rights of women and girls, including rape victims, calls to change the law in line with the rest of the so-called United Kingdom are growing. On 6 January 2016, The legislation on abortion should be repealed to allow for the termination of pregnancies involving a fatal foetal abnormality, according to a leading obstetrician.

On 6 January, Prof Fergal Malone, a prominent NI obstetrician-gynaecologist, said some of his patients were having to return the remains of their babies from the UK in shoeboxes or by courier as a result of the ban on terminations in cases of fetal anomaly. This was causing huge added emotional trauma. His hospital wanted to be able to provide all available services for women diagnosed with such a diagnosis. He was struck by how emotionally difficult it was for the women who choose a termination and have to take the added step of travelling to England and called for abortions on this ground to be made legal.

On 7 January 2016, a Belfast woman, who took abortion pills in 2012 because she was unable to afford to travel to England for an abortion, told police in public: 'Arrest me or change the law'! 

Watch the video "If abortion were legal in Northern Ireland, women wouldn't have to suffer"
USA

Six 'trailblazing' efforts to counter anti-choice restrictions in 2015

by Ally Boguhn

22 December 2015


Emily Crockett

1. The EACH Woman Act
In July, a group of congresswomen, in conjunction with a coalition of pro-choice advocates, introduced the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH Woman) Act to ensure every woman with health insurance can access abortion, regardless of income or insurance. The bill could overturn the Hyde Amendment's ban on the use of federal funds for abortion and undo laws in 25 states restricting private insurers from covering abortion. Millions of women who rely on the federal government for insurance would be affected should the bill pass, including the one in six women enrolled in Medicaid in the United States.

2. Ohio's bills to repeal the state's harsh abortion restrictions
Ohio legislators introduced a series of bills in October to repeal the state's stringent abortion restrictions and increase women's access to health care. The measures included efforts to eliminate Ohio's requirement that abortion clinics have a transfer agreement with hospitals in case of emergency, a restriction that led to the shuttering of half the state's clinics. "We are not damsels in distress tied to railroad tracks. We are the train, and we are carrying the message that we will not tolerate further infringement of a constitutionally protected right to abortion care," Rep. Greta Johnson said while speaking about the legislation at a news conference.

3. Ohio's Buffer Zone Bill
Ohio House Democrats responded to a wave of anti-choice violence, including the shooting at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic by introducing a bill in December to create a 15-foot buffer zone around abortion clinics to protect staff and patients from harassment. Rep. Stephanie Howse, one of the bill's sponsors, said on the measure. "Recent events have shaken some women in Ohio, but we are here today to assure women that we will do everything in our power to protect their right to access quality, comprehensive health care services."

4. California's Reproductive FACT Act
Pro-choice advocates and legislators in California were tired of crisis pregnancy centers lying to women, so in August they passed landmark legislation forcing such centers to disclose to patients what their reproductive rights are. The California Reproductive Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care and Transparency (FACT) Act mandates them to inform patients of the state's reproductive health care programs, and requires them to disclose whether their clinics have licensed medical professionals on staff.

5. The 21st Century Women's Health Act
Democrats in the US Congress started off the year with an ambitious measure to safeguard reproductive health care access and expand services offered under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), such as maternity and contraceptive coverage. The 21st Century Women's Health Act, introduced by Sens. Patty Murray, Barbara Boxer, and Barbara Mikulski would enact a public health campaign to inform women of their reproductive health care rights and benefits, and appoint a "women's health ombudsperson" to protect those rights.

6. Oregon's Comprehensive Women's Health Bill
In February, Oregon's Comprehensive Women's Health Bill was introduced with the backing of local groups to bring the state's reproductive health care policies to ensure access to the full spectrum of reproductive health services. Although the "trailblazing" measure was ultimately spiked by Democratic leaders over its abortion language, the bill nevertheless stood out for its landmark efforts to require both public and private health insurance providers to cover contraception, abortion, prenatal care, and childbirth. Had the bill passed, Oregon would have become the first state in the nation to mandate all residents' insurance provide every type of reproductive health care.
CANADA

Prince Edward Island abortion advocates to sue for abortion access on Island

5 January 2016 




Abortion Access Now Prince Edward Island (PEI), a group that launched in December,says it is taking the provincial government to court in order to force the province to provide full and unrestricted access to on-Island, publicly-funded abortion services. The Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF), a national equality rights organization, supports the lawsuit. LEAF accused the PEI government of "flouting the spirit" of the Supreme Court of Canada's 1988 Morgentaler decision. "For over two decades, we have advocated for on-Island, safe, legal access to abortion," Ann Wheatley, co-chair of Abortion Access Now PEI, said in a news release. "Unfortunately, it is clear to us that nothing short of a court order will prompt the government to comply with its obligations to PEI residents under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms." 

PEI is the only province that has not provided surgical abortions since 1981. Abortion access became an issue again in 2011 when the PEI Reproductive Rights Organization came together to lobby for better access. 

This is not the first time the PEI government has found itself in court over its abortion services policy. In the 1990s Dr. Henry Morgentaler took the province to court over its refusal to pay for services provided in his abortion clinics. The province won that case on appeal to the Supreme Court of PEI in 1996, and continued to pay for the service only if it was provided in hospital. 

In June of last year the province made changes to make access to abortion easier. The new system allows women to call directly to make an appointment at Moncton Hospital in New Brunswick, without a referral from a doctor or Health PEI. Since mid-December, however, only 49 PEI women had accessed abortion services in Moncton.  
SIERRA LEONE

STOP PRESS: President Ernest Bai Koroma refuses to sign the abortion bill passed by Parliament in December

6-7 January 2015

This decision followed a meeting with  the Inter Religious Council, which has been opposed to the new law. Anti-abortion lobbying against the law from various quarters seems to have been strong, including from a US Congressman. Koroma said the bill would be sent back to the parliament for reconsideration.

According to the  Sierra Leone Telegraph , this decision will prove very unpopular for parliamentarians, whose continuous support Koroma is going to need to see his way through the rest of his time in office. To rock the boat now, the article says, will only serve as "a fly in the ointment".

The newly sworn-in Attorney General, Joseph Kamara, the article says, will find the bill on his desk on his first day in office. He  "may therefore need to use his strong legal background and experience to help soften the Bill to get it through parliament a second time, with major amendments in order to keep both parliament and religious groups happy. He will be walking a tightrope."