Feminists seeking pressure from Europe to legalize abortion in Latin America

Brussels, Belgium, Apr 10, 2008 / 08:11 am

The pseudo-Catholic organization Catholics for a Free Choice, together with other feminist groups, has asked the European Parliament to “encourage” Latin American countries to legalize abortion. 

European parliamentarians met in Brussels recently to debate the issue of abortion a meeting about “the rights of women in reproductive health in Latin America.”

During the meeting, the representative of Catholics for a Free Choice, Elfriede Harth, urged European lawmakers to “encourage the governments of Latin America to resist pressure from the Vatican and act in the interests of their citizens, prioritizing the issues of health and human rights.” She also called for “health and sexual and reproductive rights in Latin America” to be included in the European Parliament’s agenda.  Harth went on to say that historically speaking, Europe has a “debt” to pay to Latin America for “imposing religion on the people.”  

Emma Ortega, who represents the International Democratic Federation of Women in Ecuador, used the argument of clandestine abortions to demand more “sexual education and planning” policies as well as increased promotion of contraceptives in Latin America.

Pro-abortion forces have been criticizing Nicaragua for prohibiting abortion in 2006, and praising the government of Mexico City for legalizing it last year.