Marking the international day to decriminalize abortion in Latin America

"Todos podemos decidir"--we can all decide--reads one sign from a rally during last year's September 28 commemoration.

(c) Pachakutik, creative commons

Concerts, marches, international conferences, movie screenings and other activities in Brazil, Nicaragua and Mexico last week helped to educate the public and promote awareness about the dangers that restrictive abortion laws pose to women’s health and rights. These activities, promoted by Ipas and other national and international nongovernment organizations (NGOs), commemorated September 28, the international day for decriminalizing abortion in Latin America.

Latin America is home to some of the most restrictive abortion policies in the world. El Salvador, Chile, and, most recently, Nicaragua, do not allow abortion under any circumstance, even when a pregnancy endangers a woman’s life. Most other countries in Central and South America only allow abortion when a woman’s life or health is in danger, or in cases of rape. However, in many cases, legal, judicial and medical obstacles make abortions impossible to obtain even when they are legally permitted. Despite these restrictions, abortion rates in Latin America are among the highest in the world, and more than 98 percent of abortions performed in Latin America are unsafe.

In São Paulo, Ipas Brazil and other NGOs focusing on reproductive rights held an international seminar on September 25 to discuss strategies to legalize abortion and improve women’s reproductive autonomy throughout Latin America. Ipas Brazil Policy Associate Beatriz Galli, as well as feminists and reproductive health experts from Uruguay, Peru, Mexico and Nicaragua spoke about their experiences working to change restrictive abortion laws in their countries. On September 26, Ipas Brazil and other organizations marched in downtown São Paulo to show support for women who were publicly condemned for having abortions.

Ipas Central America and other local NGOs held a national conference from September 22 to 26, titled, “Because the Life of Each Woman Counts—Yes to Therapeutic Abortion.” In the city of Mayasa, a fair to build support for the life and health of women was held in a traditional market, with performances by local singers and traditional Nicaraguan dancers; public film presentations were also held in León and Mayasa.The conference included a two-day meeting with representatives from El Salvador (where abortion is also legally restricted) and Nicaragua, to plan how  to change the laws banning abortion in both countries and to discuss the effects these  laws have had on Salvadorian and Nicaraguan women. The conference closed with the launching of a public service announcement in which people express support for decriminalizing therapeutic abortion. Television channels throughout Nicaragua will begin showing this announcement at the end of October.

Ipas Mexico helped sponsor a public screening of the  documentary Aborto Sin Pena, as well as the “Think about it” television spots from Brazil in downtown Mexico City. Clips from Aborto Sin Pena, the "Think about it" spots and the Nicaraguan PSA are available on Ipas's Youtube page.

For more information, contact media@ipas.org