Mexico’s Supreme Court has overturned a federal law that previously deemed abortion illegal, reaffirming a previous ruling that deemed the criminalization of abortion as unconstitutional and ensured the continued operation of public healthcare.

In 2021, the Supreme Court of Mexico declared criminal penalties for abortion unconstitutional. This decision, made by a panel of eleven judges, originated from a case brought forward in the Coahuila region. The recent ruling has expanded access to abortion throughout Mexico, which is seen as a significant victory for pro-abortion advocates, especially in a country with a predominantly Roman Catholic population like the United States.

The statement from Isabel Fulda, the deputy director of the Information Group on Reproductive Choice (GIRE), who added the case, affirms that the current ruling wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the Coahuila case from two years ago. But I could say the present-day one has extra traction, actually in phrases of getting entry to abortion.

The report additionally stated that the court, on the side of GIRE, ruled that the country-wide law’s element that made abortion illegal may want to not be in force.

In a recent submission on X, the Court declared that the abortion-related provisions of the federal penal code were unconstitutional and infringed upon the rights of individuals who successfully became parents.

President Joe Biden praised the United States’ decision to reverse the restrictions imposed on the abortion pill by lower courts earlier this year, while his administration defended the drug’s unrestricted access during the recent judicial dispute concerning reproductive rights.

In June 2022, the American Supreme Court rendered a ruling of five-three-1, reversing the landmark decision of Roe v. Wade. This decision had provided 50 years of protection for women’s reproductive rights but now allowed states to independently implement their abortion regulations. In response to mounting pressure from fellow Democrats, President Biden took executive action to safeguard access to abortion services.

Biden characterized the Supreme Court’s ruling as a display of “raw political force,” while abortion rights advocates argue that the decision could potentially pave the way for the inclusion of abortion services in the federal healthcare system, a development that could gain significance as Mexico deliberates centralizing healthcare.

The health ministry’s spokesperson did not promptly respond to a request for comment regarding the management of federal health services. After a court ruling in 2021, Mexico’s 32 states have been slow in repealing their penal codes in response to the decriminalization judgment. In line with a legal challenge and the Supreme Court’s agreement with GIRE, Aguascalientes became the 12th state in Mexico to decriminalize abortion.

ABORTION LAWS IN SOME OTHER COUNTRIES

India The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act of 1971 authorized two stages of medical termination of pregnancy:

Only one doctor’s approval is needed for abortions performed within the first 12 weeks after conception.
However, for pregnancies between 12 and 20 weeks, two medical reports are necessary to assess the potential risks to the mother’s life or health, as well as the possibility of the child having significant physical or mental disabilities.

Recent Amendments

As of 2021, the law has been amended to allow abortions up to 20 weeks after conception with the approval of one doctor.

However, for pregnancies between 20 and 24 weeks, the new rule stipulates that two doctors must provide their recommendation.

Furthermore, there are no specific guidelines that identify seven categories of women who are eligible to request an abortion under section 3B of the rules established under the MTP Act for pregnancies within the 20 to 24-week timeframe.

survivors of rape, sexual assault, or incest
Minors,
Pregnancy-related changes in marital status (widowhood and divorce),
Physically disabled women [major disability as defined by the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016] Mentally ill women, including those with mental retardation,
If a child is born with a deformity, there is a high likelihood of it being unable to sustain life or experiencing severe physical or mental impairments.
In humanitarian situations, disasters, or crises, the government may classify pregnant women for special consideration.

United States In June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned the long-standing precedent established by Roe v. Wade, which had recognized the constitutional right to abortion for almost fifty years. The initial 1973 Roe decision granted individuals the freedom to choose an abortion, although it allowed for restrictions after the first trimester of pregnancy. This decision aligned the United States with various Western European nations in the early movement toward liberalizing abortion. The right to an abortion was upheld in Planned Parenthood v. Casey in 1992, but new limitations, like waiting periods and parental consent requirements, were allowed.
China To control population growth, China introduced more liberal abortion laws in the 1950s and supported the procedure under its one-child policy, which began in 1979. To prevent unauthorized births, the policy not only made abortion services widely accessible but also employed harsh coercive measures such as fines, forced sterilization, and abortion. As part of its efforts to address the issue of a rapidly aging population, China increased the longstanding two-child limit in 2016 and further raised it to three children in 2021. To promote population growth, the State Council of China also recommended a decrease in “non-medically necessary abortions” and made efforts to enhance the empowerment of women.

-Pragati Sengar