Abortion Rights: Why Abortion Should be legalized Worldwide Without Restriction
An in depth look into the legal status of abortion throughout the world
The Facts
Studies have shown that abortion has been legalized in most countries. When it comes to the rights of women and abortion, overtime, there has been great changes, and around 50 countries removing certain restrictions in their laws on abortion. Although this is great news, not much change has happened since then, but still gives women access to abortion with restrictions such as a threat to their life or where the pregnancy was a result from rape. Roughly 59% of women and girls who are fertile, live in countries where abortion is commonly allowed, while 41% of women and girls live in countries where they are expected to obey the restrictions. The lack of having proper access to safe abortion not only affects women, but roughly 23,000 per year have died from the process of unsafe procedures. These numbers could decrease significantly if there was safe and legal access worldwide for all women without restriction.
Most Restrictive Abortion Laws
While some countries have some limitations on their laws on abortion, there are three countries around the world that not only have the most restrictive laws, but also criminalize women. Ireland, El Salvador and Chile are the top 3 countries where abortion is still illegal. All three countries ‘ governments have introduced restrictive and discriminatory abortion legislation that threatens women and girls ‘ lives. In Ireland, they have not completely banned legal abortions, but there is not much hope.This makes it difficult for a woman or girl to access safe and legal services. The laws in Ireland treat women and girls as criminals, and any individual who supports them faces up to 14 years in prison and a fine up to £4,000 for violating the PLDPA ( The Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013). Because of Ireland’s criminalization of abortion, roughly 4,000 women and girls between 20 and 34 travel out of the country every year for an abortion. El Salvador and Chile still have full bans on abortion, even if the life or health of the individual is at risk, the pregnancy is non-viable or a result from rape or incest. Women who had miscarriages were charged with aggravated murder, and could result in a prison sentence of up to 50 years. in El Salvador. There are even consequences for doctors who try to protect their patients life — a 6–12 year sentence in prison. In Chile, most women and girls are using illegal abortions that could jeopardize their lives. Looking for medical treatment may result in a sentence of 3 to 5 years imprisonment. Those that are able to afford leaving the country, do so to have safe procedures done. With all that being said, El Salvador, Chile and Ireland are not meeting their expectation in regards to the law on human rights. The lack of providing useful services for abortion in these countries has been made aware globally and is currently fighting for the rights of women and abortion laws to change.
The Benefits
With any major decision, there are pros and cons. In this case, I believe there are a lot of benefits from legalizing abortion. One of the reasons that really stands out to me is pregnancy resulting from rape. In girls aged 15 and under, over 90% of pregnancies are due to rape by family members — yes, incest. Estimates have shown that rape conception happens in the U.S. alone between 25,000 and 32,000 times a year. The United States has the benefit of having legal abortion upon request, but given the information on the countries that have illegal abortion, it is heart breaking to know that they do not have these privileges. In other cases, an individual could be incapable of giving their baby a proper life. Let’s say for example the person who becomes pregnant is living in poverty or is homeless, under these circumstances, it sometimes is best to consider to abort an unwanted pregnancy. As stated in the La Times article ‘ Op-Ed: Restricting access to abortion makes poor women poorer’, “It’s important to think about pregnancy and abortion in the context of real women’s lives, rather than as fodder for political debate”. Lastly, another benefit is the age of the person who has become pregnant. A young mother can be a difficult role to fill, especially if there is no adult help. Being a teen mom and having a child while still having to attend high school is not a simple way of life. When it comes to teens and sexual intercourse, there are circumstances where they do not really understand the practice of safe sex and can lead to unwanted pregnancy. In this case, it is no ones fault, but there are solutions other than adoption, which would mean a full pregnancy for a minor.
Conclusion
In conclusion to what I have stated, I believe that all countries could benefit from legalized abortion. Given the facts, the numbers, the criminalization of women due to abortion, and the benefits from having it be legalized, there should be more concern for the rights of women. This is only a sliver in the rights we women have in this world. Yes, we have more say than we did those years ago, but even then, there is still a right to fight! If we all come together and fight for one another, there is no greater power than forming an alliance. We have the privilege of digital technology; it’s literally at our fingertips. Together, we can make a change in history.
