SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A young legal abortion activist holds up a sign in front of the National Congress Building while senators vote for the new abortion law on August 8, 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Her sign reads: "More empowered than ever." (Photo: Ricardo Ceppi/Getty Images)
'How Many More Women Have to Die?" Days After Lawmakers Reject Legalization Bill, Argentine Woman Dies From At-Home Abortion
"Secrecy saves no life. Secrecy kills."
Aug 15, 2018
Less than a week after Argentine lawmakers rejected a bill that would have legalized some abortions, the apparent first casualty from their action has emerged: a woman died from complications from an at-home abortion.
According to the Argentine newspaper Clarin, the woman, a mother of a two-year-old and identified as "Liz," came to the hospital suffering from septic shock after she appeared to have induced an abortion using a cheap but dangerous folk remedy--parsley. Doctors removed her uterus, but she did not improve. She died Monday night.
"How many more dead women and pregnant people do they need to understand that abortion should be legal, safe, and free in Argentina?" asked the National Campaign for the Right to Legal, Safe, and Free Abortion and the Web of Health Professionals for the Right to Decide in a joint statement.
"Secrecy saves no life. Secrecy kills. For 'Liz' and so many others, let there be a law!" they added.
The bill just rejected by the Senate would have decriminalized abortions up to 14 weeks into a pregnancy.
In the wake of the Senate vote, Mariela Belski, executive director at Amnesty International Argentina, had said that lawmakers "decided to reject a law that would have saved countless lives. For now, people who need to terminate pregnancies in Argentina will have to continue to risk death or incarceration."
Citing information from Argentina's Health Ministry, Human Right Watch noted that abortion is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the country.
Guttmacher Institute noted in its Abortion Worldwide 2017: Uneven Progress and Unequal Access report that "once such countries expand the legal grounds for abortion and implement access to safe and legal abortion services, recourse to clandestine and unsafe abortions usually goes down. In societies where restrictive laws and stigma persist, however, women tend to prioritize secrecy over health--with consequences that reverberate at the individual, family and national levels."
"One common way to reduce abortion mortality is to broaden legal grounds--along with ensuring adequate mechanisms to implement the law and make safe services widely available," the report noted.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Less than a week after Argentine lawmakers rejected a bill that would have legalized some abortions, the apparent first casualty from their action has emerged: a woman died from complications from an at-home abortion.
According to the Argentine newspaper Clarin, the woman, a mother of a two-year-old and identified as "Liz," came to the hospital suffering from septic shock after she appeared to have induced an abortion using a cheap but dangerous folk remedy--parsley. Doctors removed her uterus, but she did not improve. She died Monday night.
"How many more dead women and pregnant people do they need to understand that abortion should be legal, safe, and free in Argentina?" asked the National Campaign for the Right to Legal, Safe, and Free Abortion and the Web of Health Professionals for the Right to Decide in a joint statement.
"Secrecy saves no life. Secrecy kills. For 'Liz' and so many others, let there be a law!" they added.
The bill just rejected by the Senate would have decriminalized abortions up to 14 weeks into a pregnancy.
In the wake of the Senate vote, Mariela Belski, executive director at Amnesty International Argentina, had said that lawmakers "decided to reject a law that would have saved countless lives. For now, people who need to terminate pregnancies in Argentina will have to continue to risk death or incarceration."
Citing information from Argentina's Health Ministry, Human Right Watch noted that abortion is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the country.
Guttmacher Institute noted in its Abortion Worldwide 2017: Uneven Progress and Unequal Access report that "once such countries expand the legal grounds for abortion and implement access to safe and legal abortion services, recourse to clandestine and unsafe abortions usually goes down. In societies where restrictive laws and stigma persist, however, women tend to prioritize secrecy over health--with consequences that reverberate at the individual, family and national levels."
"One common way to reduce abortion mortality is to broaden legal grounds--along with ensuring adequate mechanisms to implement the law and make safe services widely available," the report noted.
Less than a week after Argentine lawmakers rejected a bill that would have legalized some abortions, the apparent first casualty from their action has emerged: a woman died from complications from an at-home abortion.
According to the Argentine newspaper Clarin, the woman, a mother of a two-year-old and identified as "Liz," came to the hospital suffering from septic shock after she appeared to have induced an abortion using a cheap but dangerous folk remedy--parsley. Doctors removed her uterus, but she did not improve. She died Monday night.
"How many more dead women and pregnant people do they need to understand that abortion should be legal, safe, and free in Argentina?" asked the National Campaign for the Right to Legal, Safe, and Free Abortion and the Web of Health Professionals for the Right to Decide in a joint statement.
"Secrecy saves no life. Secrecy kills. For 'Liz' and so many others, let there be a law!" they added.
The bill just rejected by the Senate would have decriminalized abortions up to 14 weeks into a pregnancy.
In the wake of the Senate vote, Mariela Belski, executive director at Amnesty International Argentina, had said that lawmakers "decided to reject a law that would have saved countless lives. For now, people who need to terminate pregnancies in Argentina will have to continue to risk death or incarceration."
Citing information from Argentina's Health Ministry, Human Right Watch noted that abortion is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the country.
Guttmacher Institute noted in its Abortion Worldwide 2017: Uneven Progress and Unequal Access report that "once such countries expand the legal grounds for abortion and implement access to safe and legal abortion services, recourse to clandestine and unsafe abortions usually goes down. In societies where restrictive laws and stigma persist, however, women tend to prioritize secrecy over health--with consequences that reverberate at the individual, family and national levels."
"One common way to reduce abortion mortality is to broaden legal grounds--along with ensuring adequate mechanisms to implement the law and make safe services widely available," the report noted.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy