Colombia’s constitutional court has decriminalized abortions if they take place within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy.
Colombia has decriminalized abortion up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, the country’s Constitutional Court said on Monday. Previously, termination of pregnancy was only allowed in cases of rape, if the health of the mother was in danger or if the fetus had a fatal disease.
Under the new law, no woman will be prosecuted for having an abortion in less than 24 weeks.
Since 2006, abortions are only allowed in Colombia in cases of rape, when the woman’s life is in danger or if the pregnancy is not viable. The decision on Monday, February 21, which is good news for Colombia, a country with deeply conservative values and a Catholic majority, comes after other Latin American countries, Mexico and Argentina, decriminalized the abortion.
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The decision came following a lawsuit brought by the umbrella group Causa Justa, a group whose goal is to remove abortion from the criminal code. Causa Justa argued that because abortions were defined as a crime outside of the three cases allowed by the 2006 ruling, doctors who performed abortions and their patients were stigmatized. The group said 90% of abortions in Colombia are performed clandestinely, putting the health and lives of women at risk.
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Following its 5-4 court ruling, the court called on Congress and the government to propose legislation that will protect the rights of pregnant women, including providing family planning services, removing barriers to abortion care, and helping with adoptions. Pro-choice groups, who hailed the decision, called it ” historic achievement”.
According to Causa Justa, 250 women were arrested as a result of these investigations. 24 women are currently in prison for having abortions, according to the records of the country’s prison authorities.
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