The Senate voted 38-29 to give millions of women access to legal terminations under a new law backed by President Alberto Fernández. The margin was expected to be much smaller.
Large crowds of abortion rights activists and anti-abortion campaigners gathered outside the Palace of the Argentine National Congress to await the results, which came in the early hours of the morning after an overnight debate. Supporters of the bill greeted the news with loud cheers – and in some cases tears of joy.
Gabriela Giacomelli, whose two sisters had illegal abortions, calls the scene ‘very emotional’.
“We’ve been fighting for years,” Giacomelli said. “I see young people now, although I hope they never have to have an abortion, but if they do now, they can do it safely.”
Mariela Belski, executive director of Amnesty International Argentina and an ambassador for the global women’s rights movement She Decides, said: “Today, Argentina has taken a significant step in defending the rights of women, girls and people with reproductive capacity.”
The law will legalize abortion in all cases up to 14 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion in Argentina, the third most populous country in South America, is currently only allowed if a pregnancy is the result of rape or endangers the life or health of the woman.
In all other circumstances, abortion was illegal and punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
Advocates of abortion hope that the decision of Argentina will encourage similar movements in the other states of Catholic majority.
Belski said the move sent a strong message of hope to our entire continent – that we could change course against criminalizing abortions and against clandestine abortions, which pose serious dangers to the health and lives of millions of people. adopted today by the Argentine Congress and the enormous effort of the women’s movement to achieve it is an inspiration to the Americas and the world. ‘
By contrast, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Suriname prohibit abortions in almost all circumstances. Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala and Panama allow abortion only if it preserves the woman’s health or helps save her life.
‘Troubled numbers’
Abortion has long been a divisive issue in Argentina, and the voice has galvanized activists on both sides of the debate.
Abortion rights lawyers wore green handkerchiefs in a motion known as the green wave. Anti-abortion activists dressed in blue – the color of the movement “saves both lives” and that of the national flag.
Anti-abortion activist and student Agostina López, 20, who protested against the bill on Tuesday, told CNN before the vote that it meant “a complete loss of values such as respect for life and for women”.
“Without the right to life, none of the other rights would make sense,” López said, adding that if the law were passed, it would send a ‘false message’ that the killing of innocent babies is no longer a serious matter. . ‘
Brenda Austin, one of four congresswomen who introduced the bill for 2018, said she received Wednesday’s news with great emotion, adding that the decision is a ‘historic debt that our democracy owes to rights. of women ‘.
In recent months, the abortion rights movement has received a major boost from the support of President Fernández, who came to power last December.
In a recorded speech shortly before his inauguration, Fernández undertook to “” end the criminalization of abortion “.
Wearing a green tie – a symbol of the abortion rights movement – Fernández said the vulnerability of the procedure unfairly punished “vulnerable and poor women”, adding that they were the “biggest victims” of Argentina’s legal system.
“The criminalization of abortion has been of no use,” he said, pointing out that it “only allowed abortions to take place in an alarming number of secrets.”
Fernández said more than 3,000 people had died from illegal abortions since 1983. No official figures are available on how many illegal abortions take place in Argentina, but the national health ministry estimates that between 371,965 and 522,000 procedures are performed annually.
Referring to data from the National Ministry of Health, the HRW report found that 39,025 women and girls were admitted to public hospitals due to health issues due to abortions or miscarriages, and more than 6,000 were between 10 and 19 years old.
Experts believe that the new law will allow 13 to 16-year-olds with normal pregnancies access to abortion services without a guardian. Doctors will still have the option to ‘dutifully’ object to abortions, although the law stipulates that they will have to get another doctor to do so.
The bill also uses inclusive language that recognizes that not all people who become pregnant identify themselves as women.
Camila Fernandez, a self-identifying transgender woman who was instrumental in pursuing the language of the bill that reads’ people with the ability to get pregnant ‘, told CNN that the youth and the LGBTQ community were instrumental in’ a ‘mature centrist and patriarchal power’ that perpetuated privileges and injustices. ‘
“Hand in hand with men and non-binary people, we have won the rights that belong to them and ours today,” she said, adding that she believed the move would pave the way for further reforms for transgender people historically made of lace.
A divided campaign
The abortion debate has created tensions in a country with deep Catholic ties.
The constitution of Argentina cements the support of the government for the Catholic Church and recognizes Roman Catholicism as the official religion. However, a 1994 amendment removed the requirement for the president to be Catholic.
In November, Francis joined the debate and encouraged the anti-abortion group Mujeres de las Villas to ‘continue’ their work.
In a handwritten letter to Congresswoman and intermediary Victoria Morales Gorleri, Francis said “the problem of abortion is not primarily a matter of religion, but of human ethics, in the first place of any religious denomination.”
“Is it fair to get rid of a human life to solve a problem? Is it fair to hire a man who solves a problem?” he wrote.
On Wednesday, the Senate also passed a complimentary bill that would strengthen the social and economic safety net for pregnant women facing economic hardship who want to continue their pregnancies.
The ‘1000-day plan’ strengthens services from pregnancy to the first 1000 days of a child’s life.