Women’s Rights Advocates Say No to Anti-Women, Anti-People Electoral Candidates, Urge to Support the Decriminalization of Abortion
Quezon City, September 10, 2021 – “Last September 7, the Mexican Supreme Court declared that penalizing abortion is unconstitutional. This decriminalization of abortion in the second largest predominantly Catholic country is a historic win for the women’s movement,” said Atty. Clara Rita Padilla, Philippine Safe Abortion Advocacy Network (PINSAN), spokesperson.
The Philippines remains to have the most restrictive abortion policy not only in the region but also across the globe.
In Asia, we have recently been left behind by South Korea and Thailand which have similarly declared provisions on abortion under their penal codes as unconstitutional. In late 2020, Argentina has also decriminalized abortion. Similar to Mexico, these countries have recognized the grave human rights violations resulting from restrictive abortion laws including those that continue to criminalize pregnant persons seeking abortion care. Even predominantly Catholic countries including Spain, Brazil, Ireland, France, among others, have long been allowing abortion on broad grounds.
Around the globe, the administrations of Joe Biden (US), Michelle Bachelet (Chile) now UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero (Spain), and Nestor Kirchner, Mauricio Macri and Alberto Fernandez (Argentina) have also increased access to safe and legal abortion as election agenda government priority.
Intensifying this wave of progressive calls and developments, feminists and local advocates in the Philippines demand stronger protections and guarantees of women’s rights and are calling for the full decriminalization of abortion in the country. Almost a year ago, PINSAN, together with various women’s rights advocates and civil society organizations launched the proposed Decriminalization of Abortion Bill that will save the lives of women, girls, and persons of diverse gender identities.
At least three women die each day from complications from unsafe abortions and over a million (1.2 million) women induced abortion in 2020, placing their lives and health at risk due to lack of access to safe and legal abortion.
“In the coming 2022 elections, we strongly urge all presidential, vice-presidential, senatorial/ congressional and all other candidates to take a positive stance to save lives in peril due to lack of access to safe abortion and place decriminalization of abortion in their platform to address this urgent public health, human rights, and social justice issue in our country. Our vast group across many sectors (women, youth, workers, migrant workers, indigenous peoples, Bangsamoro, persons with disabilities, persons with diverse SOGIE) will campaign and vote for those who support the decriminalization of induced abortion,” stressed Atty. Padilla.
“We will campaign against anti-choice candidates, against candidates who have previously opposed passage of the RH Bill into law and challenged the RH Bill’s constitutionality before the Supreme Court and against candidates who oppose the bills we are pushing for,” added Atty. Padilla.
Candidates and political parties who supported the passage of the RH bill into law and those supporting bills on SOGIE, divorce, ensuring adolescent access to contraceptives and even pro-choice bills (Rep. Roy Padilla, 11th Congress) will be supported.
It is high time that we address the restrictive, archaic, and colonial 1930 Revised Penal Code on abortion that we have inherited from our Spanish colonizers, imposing penalties on women who induce abortion and those assisting them. This law has never reduced the number of women seeking abortion services, rather it has only endangered their lives by seeking unsafe abortion methods.
Atty. Padilla concluded, “Candidates and political parties should not be afraid to support the Decriminalization of Induced Abortion Bill. Tens of thousands of individuals have already publicly supported the call for decriminalization of abortion in the Philippines and this number will continue to grow. This bill, when passed into law, will save thousands of women and girls dying every day from complications from unsafe abortion. Many of us pushing for this bill have been successful in our advocacy to pass the laws on anti-sexual harassment, anti-rape, anti-VAWC, reproductive health, anti-trafficking, expanded trafficking, and repeal of vagrancy, among others. This bill to decriminalize induced abortion is part of the historical fight for women’s right to equality and non-discrimination. We are making a stand to save the lives of women, girls, and persons with diverse gender identities.”
We urge you to join our stand and be counted! Sign the petition to decriminalize induced abortion and save the lives of women, girls, and persons with diverse gender identities at: change.org/
For media inquiries, contact:
Atty. Clara Rita “Claire” Padilla, PINSAN Spokesperson
padillaclara@yahoo.com / engenderights@gmail.com
0918 218 2682