Global InformationAbortion in Argentina information
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Abortion in Argentina is legal as an elective medical procedure during the first 14 weeks from conception.[1] The abortion law was liberalized when the Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy Bill was passed by the National Congress in December 2020.[2][3][4] According to the law, any woman can request the procedure at any public or private health facility. Doctors are legally bound to either perform it or, if they are conscientious objectors, refer the patient to another physician or health facility.[5] Only three other Latin or South American countries legalised abortion on request nationwide before Argentina did: Cuba in 1965, Guyana in 1995, and Uruguay in 2012.[6] According to polling in 2021, around 44% of Argentines support the legalization of abortion on request; other polls showed 50–60% of Argentines opposed the bill.[7][8][9][10]
The voluntary termination of pregnancy (IVE, by its Spanish acronym) has been demanded by the feminist movement since the 1970s.[11] In 2005, the National Campaign for Legal, Safe, and Free Abortion, an organisation that leads the cause for abortion legalisation in Argentina, was founded.[12] Since 2007, the Campaign has annually submitted an abortion legalisation bill to the National Congress, but it was added to the legislative agenda for the first time in 2018,[13] when then President Mauricio Macri sponsored the debate. The bill was passed by the Chamber of Deputies, but rejected by the Senate.[14][15][16][17] In 2020, newly elected President Alberto Fernandez fulfilled his campaign promise and sent a new, government-sponsored bill (slightly different to the one written by the Campaign) for legalising abortion on request up to the 14th week of pregnancy.[18] It was passed again by the Chamber of Deputies, and this time, by the Senate, in December 2020.[3]
Prior to 2021, a 1921 law regulated access to and penalties for abortions.[19] Any woman that intentionally caused her own abortion or consented to another person performing one on her, was faced with one to four years of prison. In addition, any participant in the procedure could face up to fifteen years of prison, depending on the consent given by the woman, her eventual death, and the intent of the participant. The same penalty applied to doctors, surgeons, midwives, and pharmacists that induced or cooperated in the induction of an abortion, with the addition of a special license withdrawal for two times the length of their sentence. However, abortion could be performed legally by a certified doctor if:
- It had been made to avoid a threat to the life or health of the woman, and this danger could not be avoided by other means;
- The pregnancy was a result of rape, or an indecent assault against a feeble-minded or demented woman.
A report from 2005 estimated there were around 370,000 to 520,000 both legal and illegal abortions per year in Argentina.[20][21] In 2023, Argentina's Ministry of Health reported that 96,664 abortions took place in Argentina in 2022 following legalization in 2021.[22] Many failed abortion attempts and deaths due to them were not recorded as such and/or were not notified to the authorities.[23][24][25] Enforcement of anti-abortion legislation was variable and complex; there are multiple NGOs providing women with help to access drugs that can interrupt pregnancies, as well as doctors who openly perform the procedure. The anti-abortion movement, along with the Catholic Church, lobbied against the legalization of abortion, and threatened to take the new abortion law to court.[26]
- ^ "BOLETIN OFICIAL REPUBLICA ARGENTINA - ACCESO A LA INTERRUPCIÓN VOLUNTARIA DEL EMBARAZO - Ley 27610". www.boletinoficial.gob.ar. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
- ^ Goñi, Uki; Phillips, Tom (30 December 2020). "Argentina legalises abortion in landmark moment for women's rights: Country becomes only the third in South America to permit elective abortions". Abortion. The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 December 2020. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
- ^ a b Politi, Daniel; Londoño, Ernesto (30 December 2020). "Argentina Legalizes Abortion, a Milestone in a Conservative Region: The Senate vote on Wednesday was a major victory for Latin America's growing feminist movement, and its ripple effects are likely to be widespread". Americas. The New York Times. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
- ^ "Abortion becomes legal in Argentina as Chile starts a debate". Buenos Aires Times. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ "ACCESO A LA INTERRUPCIÓN VOLUNTARIA DEL EMBARAZO - Ley 27610". servicios.infoleg.gob.ar (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-05-10.
- ^ Politi, Daniel; Londoño, Ernesto (2020-12-30). "Argentina Legalizes Abortion, a Milestone in a Conservative Region". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ San Martín, Inés (30 December 2020). "Argentine senate legalizes abortion in Pope Francis's homeland". Crux.
- ^ Mallimaci, F.; Giménez Béliveau, V.; Esquivel, J. C. & Irrazábal, G. (2019) «Sociedad y Religión en Movimiento. Segunda Encuesta Nacional sobre Creencias y Actitudes Religiosas en la Argentina. Informe de Investigación, no 25.» (in Spanish) Buenos Aires: CEIL-CONICET. [1]
- ^ "Aborto: crece el número de rechazos la legalización, según una encuesta". La Nación (in Spanish). 2020-12-29. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
- ^ "Argentina legalizes abortion, despite strong Catholic opposition in Pope Francis' homeland". America Magazine. December 30, 2020.
- ^ Tarducci, Monica; Daich, Debora (2018). «Antropólogas feministas por el derecho a decidir. Aportes para una historia de la lucha por la despenalización y legalización del aborto en Argentina» Archived 2021-05-28 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish). Publicar en Antropología y Ciencias Sociales (Argentina: Colegio de Graduados en Antropología de la República Argentina) (24). ISSN 0327-6627. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
- ^ "Quiénes somos – Campaña Nacional por el Derecho al Aborto Legal Seguro y Gratuito" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2018-08-12. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ "Aborto: finalmente Macri pidió que se abra el debate". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ "Aborto: ahora la discusión se traslada al Senado, donde hay más resistencias" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 June 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- ^ "Uno por uno, cómo votó cada diputado el proyecto de legalización del aborto" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 June 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- ^ Abrevaya, Sebastian (15 June 2018). "La ola verde llega al Senado: Cómo recibirá la Cámara alta el proyecto de despenalización del aborto". PAGINA12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- ^ "Argentina senate rejects bill to legalise abortion". the Guardian. 2018-08-09. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ "Fernández sends Congress bill to legalise abortion in Argentina". Buenos Aires Times. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ "InfoLEG - Código Penal de la Nación Argentina". servicios.infoleg.gob.ar (in Spanish). 1921. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ Mario, Silvia; Pantelides, Edith Alejandra (2009). "Estimación de la magnitud del aborto inducido en la Argentina". Notas de Población (in Spanish) (87).
- ^ "Legalización del aborto: ¿qué datos existen en la Argentina?". Chequeado (in Spanish). 20 February 2018. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
- ^ "ImplementAR IVE-ILE . Ley 27.610. Informe anual 2022". bancos.salud.gob.ar/. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
- ^ "Argentina: Limits on Birth Control Threaten Human Rights". Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 2006-09-10. Retrieved 2006-08-28.
- ^ "The International Encyclopedia of Sexuality: Argentina". Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Archived from the original on 31 August 2006. Retrieved 2006-08-28.
- ^ Nadia Berenstein. "Abortion in Argentina". Planned Parenthood. Archived from the original on October 12, 2006. Retrieved 2006-08-28.
- ^ mdzol.com. "Los celestes irán por la inconstitucionalidad del aborto y denunciarán al Gobierno por "genocidio"". MdzOnline (in Spanish). Retrieved 2021-01-15.