Managua, Nicaragua, Feb 7, 2007 / 10:06 am
A top EU official has threatened Nicaragua with suspension of economic aid if the government of Daniel Ortega does not reverse its decision of last October and legalize abortion in the country.
Marc Litvine, an EU liaison for Nicaragua, said that for the current EU leadership, the issue of the legality of abortion “is linked to aid programs against poverty and to the rights of women,” therefore, “we hope that the new government will be capable of opening the debate and discussing it outside the passion of the electoral season.”
In an interview published in “El Nuevo Diario” of Managua, Litvine said the EU is “concerned” about the criminalization of abortion, and he called the move by the Nicaraguan Congress to pass the law “hurried” and criticized lawmakers for what he called the lack of debate.
Commenting further on sovereign domestic issues in Nicaragua, Litvine said, “That’s where I see one of the contradictions of the new government; it claims to be progressive, very modern, and it is going backwards because for us (the pro-life law) is a step back.”
The statements by the EU official came as the pro-abortion organization “Human Rights Watch” has launched a campaign to pressure Nicaragua to accept abortion.