In Argentina, voluntary termination of pregnancy is legal.
The session on December 11 in the Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation, with the affirmative vote 131 to 117 with 6 abstentions, was prolonged until the early morning of December 30 when senators gave full sanction to the bill of voluntary interruption of pregnancy (IVE) sent to Parliament by the Executive Branch, with 38 votes in favor, 29 against and one abstention.
The feminist movement that has been turning every corner of the country green for several decades did not give up in the face of the parliamentary setback of 2018. Instead, it redoubled its activism, wielded compelling arguments, and exposed the hypocrisy of turning a blind eye when it is known that 500.000 abortions are performed clandestinely in Argentina each year. This reveals, once again, the blatant inequality between women who have the resources to go to clinics with guaranteed quality care and those who fall into inexperienced hands and often swell the grim list of victims of malpractice: it is estimated that 40.000 women are hospitalized annually for complications resulting from abortion, and that one woman dies every ten days as a result.
It became clear in the debate that abortion is a public health issue, that the State cannot turn a blind eye or be held hostage by political, social or religious pressures, and that it must make available to girls and women all the resources for good care, support and education in case they go to a medical center with the decision to terminate their pregnancy.
With the positive vote in the early hours of December 30th, a major step has been taken. Argentina joins Uruguay, Cuba, Guyana, Puerto Rico, and the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Mexico in legalizing abortion. On the other hand, all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean continue to criminalize abortion and legislate arbitrarily over women's bodies.
As detailed in her column in InfoCLACSO on December 16 by the Executive Secretary of CLACSO, Karina Batthyány: “The situation of abortion today in the region is, in general terms, that it is either prohibited or very restricted in some cases and little decriminalized… That there is this small number of countries –which therefore represents an exception to the rule that extends throughout the region– implies very important risks for the health of women and results that concern us in all these countries.”
“This situation, when we travel through Latin America and the Caribbean, shows us that practically 97% of Latin American and Caribbean women of reproductive age live in countries where abortion is not permitted. And it is estimated that approximately 5 to 10 women die each year from clandestine abortions in this region—the numbers are complex because the figures are not clear in most countries. Therefore, it is a public health problem,” she added.
SEE COLUMN BY KARINA BATTHYÁNY
SEE: Statement from the CLACSO Steering Committee
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