Nicaragua's Devastating New Ban
Washington, DC - October 30, 2006Women in Nicaragua suffered a terrible blow last Thursday when the Nicaraguan legislature voted in favor of a total ban on all abortions—even in cases of rape, incest or when the woman’s life is in danger. This shocking move will surely result in higher rates of maternal mortality and morbidity. PAI condemns this misguided decision and urges the Nicaraguan government to rescind this dangerous law.
Abortion in Nicaragua has never been very accessible—previous law required the consensus of three doctors that a woman’s life was in danger in order to grant one. This new law puts the health of Nicaraguan women at even greater risk. Access to safe abortion is crucial to good reproductive health as it allows a woman to terminate a pregnancy that could cost her own life, often leaving behind motherless children whose own health suffers. Nicaragua has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in Latin America—139 per 100,000—and 16 percent of those deaths are the result of unsafe abortions.
To truly lower the incidence of abortion, Nicaragua should be expanding access to reproductive health services and supplies. Access to these supplies and services has been proven to help prevent unintended pregnancies and reduce rates of abortion.
The Nicaraguan legislature—with fifty-nine lawmakers voting for the measure, nine abstaining and an appalling twenty-nine no-shows—doesn’t recognize that banning abortion doesn’t make it go away—it makes it more dangerous. Women who are desperate to terminate a pregnancy often disregard the legal status of abortion and risk their lives to obtain one. An estimated 32,000 Nicaraguan women underwent the procedure illegally last year—likely in unsafe conditions. This ban only serves to drive abortion even further underground and force Nicaraguan women to pay the ultimate price.
Population Action International (PAI) works to improve individual well-being and preserve global resources by mobilizing political and financial support for population, family planning and reproductive health policies and programs.
