States must act now to allow safe, legal abortions for women and girls, say UN rights experts
GENEVA (27 September 2018) – States across the world should act now to decriminalise abortion and make every effort to
ensure women and girls have the right to take their own decisions about pregnancy, say a group of UN human rights
experts*.
“An estimated 225 million women worldwide are deprived of access to modern contraception, often leading to unplanned
pregnancies. For girls, issues arising from pregnancy and childbirth are some of the most common causes of death in
developing countries, with those under 15 five times more at risk,” the experts said in a statement to mark
International Safe Abortion Day on 28 September.
“Unsafe abortions cause the deaths of some 47,000 women each year and a further five million suffer some form of
temporary or permanent disability. Maternal mortality violates the rights to life, health, equality and freedom from
being discriminated against.
“Issues around access to safe, legal abortion are at the very core of a woman’s fundamental right to equality, privacy
and physical and mental health and these are preconditions for the enjoyment of other rights and freedoms. We hope that
important steps taken in some countries to reclaim women’s reproductive rights through referendums, legislative and
judicial action, can be followed in others,” the experts added.
“Too many women are physically and verbally mistreated or simply denied emergency medical care after abortions. This
amounts to another means of punishment which violates international law and, in many instances, national laws and
policies. Governments have a duty to ensure that women and girls who have abortions are treated humanely and without
judgement or assumption of violating laws, in particular in cases of miscarriages.
“Legal frameworks for abortion have typically been designed to control women's decision-making through the use of
criminal law. Data from the World Health Organization clearly demonstrates that criminalising the termination of
pregnancy does not reduce the number of women who resort to abortion procedures. Rather, it is likely to increase those
seeking clandestine and unsafe procedures.
“Concerns about unsafe abortion must be addressed through public health, relevant medical malpractice and civil laws. It
is therefore crucial that countries demonstrate their commitment to eliminating discrimination against women in their
legislation and to advancing women’s and adolescents’ sexual and reproductive rights, in accordance with international
human rights standards,” the experts emphasized.
ENDS