Pro-life organizations vow to decrease maternal death rates in Mexico

Mexico City, Mexico, Oct 6, 2010 / 20:08 pm

Various pro-life organizations spoke out Tuesday, promising to find ways to combat Mexico’s maternal death rate.

In a Tuesday statement, the groups recalled the World Health Organization’s statistics which state that only 13 percent of maternal deaths are due to “unsafe” abortions. They noted that combating the remaining 87 percent of the deaths – due to factors such hemorrhaging, infections, preeclampsia and labor complications - must be a top priority.

Clara Perez of Code Women in Morelos, Mexico explained that many women in poor areas of the country are without access to antibiotics for treating bleeding and infections. She said that society must address this problem by supporting women who have chosen life through health care.

Patricia Lopez Mancera of the Center for the Study and Comprehensive Formation of Women in Cancun said it is cheaper for some groups, politicians and leaders for women to “kill their child before birth or even upon birth” than to provide for their needs before, during and after pregnancy. She charged that if there was real interest in Mexican society to save the lives of these women, there would be a greater effort to provide basic medical care, as well as emergency obstetricians, competent medical personnel, maternity clinics, antibiotics and clean water.

Zita Herrador of the organization Be a Woman, added, “We need to work on public policies that support pregnant women, both teens and adults. Teens need to be given a home if they have been run out of their own, the means to complete their schooling and to obtain a job where all of their rights are respected.”