MEXICO
‘It’s a historic day,’ declares chief justice as Supreme Court decriminalizes abortion
Chief Justice Zaldívar: 'A new route of freedom, clarity, dignity and respect for all women.'
Decision means no woman can be prosecuted for having an abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy
Published on Tuesday, September 7, 2021
The Supreme Court (SCJN) has effectively decriminalized abortion across Mexico with a unanimous decision on Tuesday.
In response to a challenge to abortion restrictions in Coahuila, the court ruled that the criminalization of abortion is unconstitutional, setting a precedent for the legalization of early term abortion in all 32 states.
Outside cases of rape and those in which an expectant mother’s life is endangered, abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is currently only legal in four states: Mexico City, Oaxaca, Hidalgo and Veracruz.
Chief Justice Arturo Zaldívar declared Tuesday a historic day for all Mexican women, especially the most vulnerable.
From now on, no woman can be prosecuted for having an abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy without violating the ruling of the SCJN and the Mexican constitution, he said.
“From now on, a new route of freedom, clarity, dignity and respect for all … women begins,” Zaldívar said.
“… Today is another step forward in the historic struggle for their equality, dignity and for the full exercise of their rights,” he said.
Justice Luis María Aguilar Morales, the proponent of the decriminalization of abortion in Coahuila, said that “never again” can a woman or a person with the capacity to give birth be criminally punished for having an abortion.
“Today the threat of prison and the stigma that weighs on people who freely decide to interrupt their pregnancy is banished,” he said.
Outside the court, pro-life activists condemned the court’s ruling, while feminist groups celebrated the decision online.
“Historic ruling!” reproductive rights group GIRE declared on Twitter.
Mexico, still a largely conservative nation with the second highest number of Catholics in the world after Brazil, is now the most populous country in Latin America to decriminalize abortion.
The court’s decision came after women’s groups in recent years ramped up pressure on authorities to legalize it across the country at numerous protests.
President López Obrador, a staunch advocate for participatory democracy, previously proposed holding a referendum on the subject but on Tuesday morning backed the SCJN’s capacity to rule on the issue.
“The best thing in this case is that if it’s already in the Supreme Court it should be resolved there,” he said, adding that he wouldn’t take a side because doing so would not be “the most prudent thing” to do.
With reports from Milenio and El País
Published on Tuesday, September 7, 2021
The Supreme Court (SCJN) has effectively decriminalized abortion across Mexico with a unanimous decision on Tuesday.
In response to a challenge to abortion restrictions in Coahuila, the court ruled that the criminalization of abortion is unconstitutional, setting a precedent for the legalization of early term abortion in all 32 states.
Outside cases of rape and those in which an expectant mother’s life is endangered, abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is currently only legal in four states: Mexico City, Oaxaca, Hidalgo and Veracruz.
Chief Justice Arturo Zaldívar declared Tuesday a historic day for all Mexican women, especially the most vulnerable.
From now on, no woman can be prosecuted for having an abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy without violating the ruling of the SCJN and the Mexican constitution, he said.
“From now on, a new route of freedom, clarity, dignity and respect for all … women begins,” Zaldívar said.
“… Today is another step forward in the historic struggle for their equality, dignity and for the full exercise of their rights,” he said.
Justice Luis María Aguilar Morales, the proponent of the decriminalization of abortion in Coahuila, said that “never again” can a woman or a person with the capacity to give birth be criminally punished for having an abortion.
“Today the threat of prison and the stigma that weighs on people who freely decide to interrupt their pregnancy is banished,” he said.
Outside the court, pro-life activists condemned the court’s ruling, while feminist groups celebrated the decision online.
“Historic ruling!” reproductive rights group GIRE declared on Twitter.
Mexico, still a largely conservative nation with the second highest number of Catholics in the world after Brazil, is now the most populous country in Latin America to decriminalize abortion.
The court’s decision came after women’s groups in recent years ramped up pressure on authorities to legalize it across the country at numerous protests.
President López Obrador, a staunch advocate for participatory democracy, previously proposed holding a referendum on the subject but on Tuesday morning backed the SCJN’s capacity to rule on the issue.
“The best thing in this case is that if it’s already in the Supreme Court it should be resolved there,” he said, adding that he wouldn’t take a side because doing so would not be “the most prudent thing” to do.
With reports from Milenio and El País
The result of a Supreme Court vote could set a precedent
Opponents gather Monday outside the Supreme Court in Mexico City.
Published on Tuesday, September 7, 2021
The Supreme Court (SCJN) appears to be on the verge of setting a precedent that will pave the way for the legalization of abortion across Mexico.
The court’s justices began debating challenges to abortion restrictions in Coahuila and Sinaloa on Monday, and eight of the 11 indicated they are in favor of revoking criminal penalties for the termination of a pregnancy in the former state. The other three justices didn’t participate in Monday’s session.
Voting on the challenges is to commence on Tuesday. If a qualified majority of eight justices vote in favor of invalidating the section of the Coahuila criminal code that punishes abortion at any stage of a pregnancy by one to three years imprisonment, the court would set a precedent that would oblige judges across Mexico to hand down similar rulings.
Outside cases of rape and those in which an expectant mother’s life is endangered, abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is currently only legal in four states: Mexico City, Oaxaca, Hidalgo and Veracruz. But a court ruling that decriminalizes abortion in Coahuila would in time open up access to early abortion for millions of women in the country’s other 28 states.
Justice Luis María Aguilar, the proponent of the decriminalization of abortion in Coahuila, said the aim is to give women the right to make decisions about their own bodies and lives without facing prosecution. The state has an obligation to provide an “environment of protection” in which that can occur, “not one of punishment,” the justice said.
Aguilar also said that his proposal acknowledges the changes that have taken place in Mexican society as well as fundamental principles such as democracy and the separation of church and state.
Chief Justice Arturo Zaldívar said that all the SCJN justices are “in favor of life” but “some of us are in favor of women’s lives being lives in which their dignity is respected, in which they can fully exercise their rights, in which they are free from violence and can determine their own destiny.”
With regard to Sinaloa, Justice Alfredo Gutiérrez proposed a court ruling that declares the absolute prohibition of abortion in that state as unconstitutional. His proposal argues that a modification to the state’s charter that states that life begins at conception violates the Mexican constitution.
Gutiérrez also argues that states do not have the right to deny women access to sexual and reproductive health services, including abortion. In addition, his initiative seeks to invalidate a law that allows health personnel to refuse to carry out an abortion due to their own personal beliefs on the practice.
A qualified majority vote in favor of Gutiérrez’s proposal would also set a precedent for the legalization of abortion across Mexico.
As justices discussed the matters on Monday, conservative groups protested outside the Supreme Court building in Mexico City.
Holding signs with pro-life messages as well as religious imagery, the demonstrators exhorted the SCJN to not rule in favor of declaring abortion restrictions unconstitutional.
“We’re urging the Supreme Court justices to reject these [challenges to states’ efforts to limit abortions], … we trust that these justices are going to defend life,” said Leticia Gonzalez-Luna, president of the pro-life group Voz Pública.
In contrast, pro-choice activists were optimistic that the court would set a precedent that paves the way for legal abortion across Mexico.
“The SCJN will make the decriminalization of abortion a reality in all federal entities,” tweeted Estefanía Veloz, a feminist and lawyer.
With reports from Milenio, El País and EFE
Published on Tuesday, September 7, 2021
The Supreme Court (SCJN) appears to be on the verge of setting a precedent that will pave the way for the legalization of abortion across Mexico.
The court’s justices began debating challenges to abortion restrictions in Coahuila and Sinaloa on Monday, and eight of the 11 indicated they are in favor of revoking criminal penalties for the termination of a pregnancy in the former state. The other three justices didn’t participate in Monday’s session.
Voting on the challenges is to commence on Tuesday. If a qualified majority of eight justices vote in favor of invalidating the section of the Coahuila criminal code that punishes abortion at any stage of a pregnancy by one to three years imprisonment, the court would set a precedent that would oblige judges across Mexico to hand down similar rulings.
Outside cases of rape and those in which an expectant mother’s life is endangered, abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is currently only legal in four states: Mexico City, Oaxaca, Hidalgo and Veracruz. But a court ruling that decriminalizes abortion in Coahuila would in time open up access to early abortion for millions of women in the country’s other 28 states.
Justice Luis María Aguilar, the proponent of the decriminalization of abortion in Coahuila, said the aim is to give women the right to make decisions about their own bodies and lives without facing prosecution. The state has an obligation to provide an “environment of protection” in which that can occur, “not one of punishment,” the justice said.
Aguilar also said that his proposal acknowledges the changes that have taken place in Mexican society as well as fundamental principles such as democracy and the separation of church and state.
Chief Justice Arturo Zaldívar said that all the SCJN justices are “in favor of life” but “some of us are in favor of women’s lives being lives in which their dignity is respected, in which they can fully exercise their rights, in which they are free from violence and can determine their own destiny.”
With regard to Sinaloa, Justice Alfredo Gutiérrez proposed a court ruling that declares the absolute prohibition of abortion in that state as unconstitutional. His proposal argues that a modification to the state’s charter that states that life begins at conception violates the Mexican constitution.
Gutiérrez also argues that states do not have the right to deny women access to sexual and reproductive health services, including abortion. In addition, his initiative seeks to invalidate a law that allows health personnel to refuse to carry out an abortion due to their own personal beliefs on the practice.
A qualified majority vote in favor of Gutiérrez’s proposal would also set a precedent for the legalization of abortion across Mexico.
As justices discussed the matters on Monday, conservative groups protested outside the Supreme Court building in Mexico City.
Holding signs with pro-life messages as well as religious imagery, the demonstrators exhorted the SCJN to not rule in favor of declaring abortion restrictions unconstitutional.
“We’re urging the Supreme Court justices to reject these [challenges to states’ efforts to limit abortions], … we trust that these justices are going to defend life,” said Leticia Gonzalez-Luna, president of the pro-life group Voz Pública.
In contrast, pro-choice activists were optimistic that the court would set a precedent that paves the way for legal abortion across Mexico.
“The SCJN will make the decriminalization of abortion a reality in all federal entities,” tweeted Estefanía Veloz, a feminist and lawyer.
With reports from Milenio, El País and EFE
Veracruz Congress votes to decriminalize abortion
It is the fourth state to do so, joining Mexico City, Oaxaca and Hidalgo
Supporters of decriminalization celebrate the vote in Veracruz.
Published on Wednesday, July 21, 2021
Mexico‘s southeastern state of Veracruz will become the fourth state in the predominantly Roman Catholic country to clear away criminal penalties for elective abortion after lawmakers on Tuesday voted to decriminalize the procedure.
The initiative to allow abortions by choice passed in a 25-13 vote with one abstention, Veracruz’s Congress said in a statement.
The state will join Mexico City, Oaxaca and Hidalgo, which decriminalized abortion just late last month, as places where women can now choose to have abortions within 12 weeks of pregnancy.
“We thought this day was so far off that we’re in shock, in the best way possible,” said a tweet from Brujas del Mar, a Veracruz feminist group, while noting that most of Mexico‘s states have yet to follow suit.
“Let’s go after the 28 (states) that are left.”
Veracruz is one of just three states that does not mandate jail time for women who have unauthorized abortions, according to data from advocacy group GIRE, in a region where traditional anti-abortion attitudes have only recently started to shift.
Even as Argentina legalized the procedure in December, several of more than 20 Latin American nations still ban abortion outright, including El Salvador, which has sentenced some women to up to 40 years in prison.
Veracruz became a focal point in Mexico‘s abortion debate last year when the Supreme Court ruled against a proposal to decriminalize abortion in the state, a move condemned by women’s rights activists.
Published on Wednesday, July 21, 2021
Mexico‘s southeastern state of Veracruz will become the fourth state in the predominantly Roman Catholic country to clear away criminal penalties for elective abortion after lawmakers on Tuesday voted to decriminalize the procedure.
The initiative to allow abortions by choice passed in a 25-13 vote with one abstention, Veracruz’s Congress said in a statement.
The state will join Mexico City, Oaxaca and Hidalgo, which decriminalized abortion just late last month, as places where women can now choose to have abortions within 12 weeks of pregnancy.
“We thought this day was so far off that we’re in shock, in the best way possible,” said a tweet from Brujas del Mar, a Veracruz feminist group, while noting that most of Mexico‘s states have yet to follow suit.
“Let’s go after the 28 (states) that are left.”
Veracruz is one of just three states that does not mandate jail time for women who have unauthorized abortions, according to data from advocacy group GIRE, in a region where traditional anti-abortion attitudes have only recently started to shift.
Even as Argentina legalized the procedure in December, several of more than 20 Latin American nations still ban abortion outright, including El Salvador, which has sentenced some women to up to 40 years in prison.
Veracruz became a focal point in Mexico‘s abortion debate last year when the Supreme Court ruled against a proposal to decriminalize abortion in the state, a move condemned by women’s rights activists.
Hidalgo decriminalizes abortion, the third state to do so
The vote comes a year and a half after the state Congress voted against decriminalization
Women celebrate Wednesday's vote in Hidalgo.
Published on Thursday, July 1, 2021
Hidalgo has become the third state in Mexico to legalize abortion after a majority of lawmakers voted on Wednesday in favor of allowing women to terminate a pregnancy during the first 12 weeks.
Sixteen Morena party lawmakers voted in favor of legalization while 11 deputies from parties including the National Action Party (PAN) and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) opposed the legislation but refused to participate in the vote.
One Morena lawmaker formally abstained, while two other members of the 30-seat unicameral Congress were absent.
Mexico City, which legalized abortion in 2007, and Oaxaca, which followed suit in 2019, are the only other states where women can legally end a pregnancy in cases not involving rape, a risk to their lives or fetal anomalies.
Passed amid rowdy opposition from PAN and PRI lawmakers, Hidalgo’s legislation stipulates that authorities must guarantee access to free abortion services for women in their first 12 weeks of pregnancy. The same access must be extended to women incarcerated in prisons in the state, whose capital, Pachuca, is just 90 kilometers northeast of Mexico City.
Women who end a pregnancy after 12 weeks can be fined and imprisoned for up to a year, according to the approved bill.
Pro-choice activists celebrated the results of yesterday’s vote, which came 1 1/2 years after the same Congress rejected a bill to legalize abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
“One state more in favor of freedom and justice for women. The Marea Verde rises and we’re all very happy,” reproductive rights group GIRE said on Twitter.
The Marea Verde, or Green Tide, is a pro-choice movement that is active in many Latin American countries.
PAN and PRI lawmakers claimed that Morena, which controls the Hidalgo Congress, shut down debate and thus prevented them from presenting their arguments against legalization. They also asserted that the legislative process was plagued by other irregularities.
Morena is violating the law, we’re going to [take the matter to] court,” said PAN Deputy Asael Hernández Cerón.
Abortion is a highly contentious issue in Mexico, where the Catholic Church remains influential and many parts of the country retain traditional customs and beliefs. However, in recent years feminist groups have become more vocal and persistent in their fight for women across Mexico to have the right to access safe and legal abortions.
Abortion activists were hopeful that the Supreme Court (SCJN) would deliver a landmark ruling in 2020 that would pave the way for the decriminalization of abortion across Mexico. However, the court voted against upholding an injunction granted in Veracruz that ordered that state’s Congress to remove articles from the criminal code that stipulate that abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is illegal.
If the SCJN had upheld the injunction, the decision would have set a precedent that could have led to further court orders instructing state legislatures to legalize first-trimester abortion.
Hidalgo has become the third state in Mexico to legalize abortion after a majority of lawmakers voted on Wednesday in favor of allowing women to terminate a pregnancy during the first 12 weeks.
Sixteen Morena party lawmakers voted in favor of legalization while 11 deputies from parties including the National Action Party (PAN) and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) opposed the legislation but refused to participate in the vote.
One Morena lawmaker formally abstained, while two other members of the 30-seat unicameral Congress were absent.
Mexico City, which legalized abortion in 2007, and Oaxaca, which followed suit in 2019, are the only other states where women can legally end a pregnancy in cases not involving rape, a risk to their lives or fetal anomalies.
Passed amid rowdy opposition from PAN and PRI lawmakers, Hidalgo’s legislation stipulates that authorities must guarantee access to free abortion services for women in their first 12 weeks of pregnancy. The same access must be extended to women incarcerated in prisons in the state, whose capital, Pachuca, is just 90 kilometers northeast of Mexico City.
Women who end a pregnancy after 12 weeks can be fined and imprisoned for up to a year, according to the approved bill.
Pro-choice activists celebrated the results of yesterday’s vote, which came 1 1/2 years after the same Congress rejected a bill to legalize abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
“One state more in favor of freedom and justice for women. The Marea Verde rises and we’re all very happy,” reproductive rights group GIRE said on Twitter.
The Marea Verde, or Green Tide, is a pro-choice movement that is active in many Latin American countries.
PAN and PRI lawmakers claimed that Morena, which controls the Hidalgo Congress, shut down debate and thus prevented them from presenting their arguments against legalization. They also asserted that the legislative process was plagued by other irregularities.
Morena is violating the law, we’re going to [take the matter to] court,” said PAN Deputy Asael Hernández Cerón.
Abortion is a highly contentious issue in Mexico, where the Catholic Church remains influential and many parts of the country retain traditional customs and beliefs. However, in recent years feminist groups have become more vocal and persistent in their fight for women across Mexico to have the right to access safe and legal abortions.
Abortion activists were hopeful that the Supreme Court (SCJN) would deliver a landmark ruling in 2020 that would pave the way for the decriminalization of abortion across Mexico. However, the court voted against upholding an injunction granted in Veracruz that ordered that state’s Congress to remove articles from the criminal code that stipulate that abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is illegal.
If the SCJN had upheld the injunction, the decision would have set a precedent that could have led to further court orders instructing state legislatures to legalize first-trimester abortion.
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