In Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Mexico City, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala and Zacatecas, abortion is legal only if the woman`s physical, mental or social health is at risk and the pregnancy affects her. Between advances and setbacks, the decriminalization of abortion is progressing in Mexico©. The country`s Supreme Court has picked up the pace by declaring the imprisonment of women for abortion unconstitutional and enacting “human life from conception” laws that violate the sexual and reproductive rights of Mexican women. The decisions set a historic precedent, but there is still a long way to go before elective abortion is no longer illegal in 28 of the country`s 32 states. Abortion is legal if your health is threatened by pregnancy or if it affects your physical, mental and/or social well-being. (See the World Health Organization`s definition of health.) Due to a second court decision of 9 September 2021, the deadline system for the end of the elections is fully valid. Institutions must not impose laws that infringe on the fundamental rights of those already born or create barriers to voluntary abortion. Similarly, they cannot define when life begins, nor give legal personality to the products of pregnancy (actions for unconstitutionality AI 106/2018 and AI 107/2018). [9] [10] If the pregnancy is the result of sexual violence, abortion is legal throughout the country and public health facilities are required to provide medical abortion services. In April 2007, the Federal District Legislative Assembly decriminalized induced abortion in Mexico City, allowing many women from other states, including other countries, to travel to the nation`s capital to safely and legally terminate their pregnancies without hiding. The anti-abortion padlock, which had existed in the local constitution since 2009, was removed in September 2021. This shielding has already been considered invalid by the SCJN decree (unconstitutionality actions AI 106/2018 and AI 107/2018).
Thus, it is expressly stated that natural or natural persons have legal capacity at birth and not at the time of conception. Local legislation still does not formally recognize the concept of a pregnant person to include gender diversity, but the local constitution generally recognizes the human rights of every person, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Mexico City made history in 2007 by becoming the first state to decriminalize abortion. By 46 votes in favour, 19 against and one abstention, article 144 of the Criminal Code was reformed. In this way, Coahuila joins Veracruz, Hidalgo, Oaxaca and Mexico City, states where abortion has already been decriminalized up to the 12th week of pregnancy, regardless of the causes or reasons for this decision. Voluntary abortion has been completely decriminalized since September 2021 due to a decision of the SCJN (action for unconstitutionality AI 148/2017). The local legislature has only declared the corresponding articles of the penal code invalid, but the time limits, penalties or grounds have not been changed. That is, abortion is in a loophole. Similarly, conscientious objection is governed by federal and local health laws. Medical and nursing staff may apologize for moral reasons for performing legal abortions, but in order to prevent this from constituting another obstacle to the exercise of human rights, there are restrictions on this number (Unconstitutionality Action AI 54/2018).
[11] [12] Reporting rape is not a prerequisite for abortion. Only if you are under 12 years of age, the application must come from your mother, father or guardian. There are eight reasons why abortion is allowed in the country. At the national level, all women have the right to terminate their pregnancies if they are the result of sexual violence. In Mexico, machismo and religious conservatism have long dominated, leaving a strong social stigma around abortion. Many people still have the idea that motherhood is the obligatory function of women, and unfortunately this has permeated state institutions. Until recently, the trend was very restrictive, even though abortion has been adapted to the legal bases of the respective penal code. [236] In a country where impunity is estimated at 99%,[237][238] courts have gone to great lengths to ban not only women who chose to voluntarily terminate their pregnancies but also those who had undergone spontaneous and reckless abortions (completely decriminalized in 30 of the 32 states). [239] Among those most affected are people who have already been injured because of their ethnic status (indigenous and often non-Hispanic women), economic income (poverty), and level of education (with little or less basic education completed); We are therefore talking about total revictimization. [240] The fifth state to decriminalize abortion in Mexico was Baja California in October 2021.
Congress has reformed its penal code and approved its decriminalization up to the 12th week of pregnancy, but recognition of life in the entity is granted from conception. If the abortion is involuntary, accidental, or as a result of an act you performed without intent to induce an abortion. Since 2007, only one person has died, because although the procedure, especially surgery, is carried out with the highest quality and safety standards, there is still a risk of complications. This contrasts with IWRM`s estimate of 120 deaths per year before decriminalization and legalization in the state. Thanks to the above, those imprisoned for the crime of voluntary abortion have been able to leave prison, as jurisdiction in Mexico can only be applied retroactively if it benefits human rights. For this reason, the Federal Ministry of the Interior (Segob), in coordination with the Judicial Support Unit, the National Commission for the Prevention and Eradication of Violence against Women (Conavim) and the National Commission of the Supreme Courts of the United Mexican States (CONATRIB), is implementing the necessary procedures for the release of convicted persons. [93] [94] [95] [96] Similarly, amnesty laws that some organizations have enacted since the beginning of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador`s government have been strengthened. Some organizations have even created specific amnesty laws for women who have again been victims of gender-based violence. [97] In what follows, we will create maps of the states in Mexico where abortion is legal and their various causes. Later, in 2004 and again in the extinct Federal District, under the government of the new head of government, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, changes were made to the health law that went almost unnoticed, but that have to date had a significant impact on the decriminalization and legalization of electoral abortion. On that occasion, it was noted that the institution`s public institutions would be obliged to perform abortion free of charge and under quality conditions in the cases and for reasons authorized by its Criminal Code. A maximum waiting period for the procedure was also provided for once the application had been lodged and the conditions had been met.
In addition, it was envisaged that users would be informed quickly and honestly about their options and the consequences for their health. Finally, conscientious objection was regulated in such a way that medical and nursing staff who apologized for ideological or moral reasons for not intervening in these cases were obliged to refer patients with non-refusing staff.