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Latin America and Caribbean

Therapeutic abortion: A right in name only in Colombia?

May 9, 2008
Constanza Vieira, Inter Press Service - IPS

A woman in Pasto, the capital of the western Colombian province of Nariño, found out that the baby she was expecting was severely deformed. But when she went to the provincial university hospital for an abortion, the chief obstetrician gynecologist told her that "If your son is born deformed, take him to a circus."

Cases like this one gave rise to LAICIA (High Impact Litigation, the Unconstitutionality of Abortion Law in Colombia). The group is headed by Mónica Roa, a young lawyer with Women's Link Worldwide (WLW), which works for gender equality through legal action and "the development and strategic implementation of human rights laws" around the world.

• Read the complete article.