This is a conversation that needs to happen. One in four women will need one in their lifetime. Many will have considered it. Many more will. It’s not something that is going to go away.
We need to tackle this issue. How can society deal with this reality? Do we ignore the problem? Do we ban and criminalise it? Do we allow complete freedom?
Well, ignoring it doesn’t work. Neither does banning and/or criminalising it. Abortions happen whether we like it or not. If safe terminations are not allowed or available in an area, women travel where they can get it. If they can’t find a suitable safe medical practice, they’ll settle for an unsuitable one. Before the 1967 Abortion Act in the UK many women died in back street abortions. Others tried to do it themselves in desperation. Coat-hangers, alcohol, punches to the stomach, and all manner of barbarous means also added to the death toll. Legal abortions save lives.
We all know someone in Gib who’s had an abortion in Spain. Which would be fine, abortions are legal and safe in Spain. Except it isn’t. They are not free. Nor cheap. They cost in the region of 600 to 800 euros, which could be close to a month’s salary for many. They only allow surgical abortions for non-residents, when medical abortions (taking abortive pills) are significantly better particularly for terminations within 10 weeks (which statistically constitutes 80% of abortions in the UK, for example).
We all know that whenever there is a problem with a pregnancy in Gib, the pregnant person is sent to the UK for a “second opinion” and the termination is done there.
It is wrong to call pro-choice advocates “pro-abortionists”. This implies that we are pushing women to have terminations. We don’t. We really don’t. It’s in the name – choice. We want women to have the choice to have safe terminations. We want them to be well informed on the subject. We want them to be able to have these terminations at home. And in case of complications they can get follow ups by the same doctor that treated them. We want them to receive counselling.
We advocate for women to chose what they think is best for their life circumstances. Who would know best what they are going through? We would be delighted if zero women chose to have abortions. For the right reasons. Unfortunately we do not live in a perfect society. Women are raped. They are trapped in domestic violence or abusive situations. Pregnancies sometimes have complications. Because life is complicated.
If you want to reduce abortion rates what actually works is prevention through proper sex education. Through free and freely available contraception. Not by banning. Banning something doesn’t work. It didn’t work with the Prohibition. It doesn’t work with drugs like marijuana. And it doesn’t work with abortion*.
So the only viable, sensible option is to manage it (in combination with sex education and contraception). Legalise it, resource for it, decriminalise it. By all means set sensible limits, but let women make their choice. It might save your daughter, wife or other loved one.
*Some people may say that you could argue the same point for murder. We do not agree that this is comparing like with like. We disagree with the position taken by many that an embryo should have, effectively, more rights than a fully formed human. Embryo’s are not sentient and they should not be assigned more value than, for example, a mother of three other children or a woman with mental health issues or even a person who simply does not want children.
Pro-Choice Gibraltar 