LEGALIZATION OF ABORTION

 Alessandro Isaac Perez Serrano (Legalization of abortion).

El Salvador is one of the countries with the harshest abortion laws in the world. Countless women in that country are enduring decades of prison sentences as a result of a miscarriage or gynecological emergency.

According to a study by the Heinrich Böll Foundation regional office for Central America, between the years 2000 and 2019 alone, 181 women were accused of aborting or suffering a miscarriage. Abortion is illegal in many countries around the world. But in almost no other country are penalties applied as harshly as in El Salvador, a country that is strongly conservative and religious.

Stillbirth, miscarriage, or gynecological emergency: It doesn't matter how a pregnancy ends, intentional or unintentional, voluntary or unintentional. If the embryo or fetus dies, it is considered murder or manslaughter. Even if a woman has been raped, her life is threatened by pregnancy or if she is still a child. The fact is considered a "crime in relation to human life", according to the law. in these articles from the salvadoran government we can see some of the things that will happen for breaking the law it establishes that abortion is penalized in all circumstances.  which we can have knowledge of what the laws dictate in these cases articles 133 to 137 present the sanctions in case of incurring or performing abortions.  Anyone who causes an abortion with the consent of the woman or the woman who causes her own abortion is penalized with imprisonment from 2 to 8 years;  in the event that this is without the consent of the woman, it is punishable by imprisonment from 4 to 10 years.  If the abortion is committed by a physician, it is punishable by imprisonment from 5 to 12 years, in addition to the penalty of disqualification from exercising the profession or activity for the same period.  Anyone who induces a woman or provides the means to have an abortion is penalized with prison from 2 to 5 years, in case of being the parent, the sanction is broken by a third of the sentence, in case of provoking negligently an abortion is punishable by imprisonment from 6 months to 2 years. 

Dr. Guillermo Ortiz and Beatriz

gynecological emergencies. "He knew what he had to do to help them," says Ortiz. "But I was prohibited by law." He felt like a criminal, trying to hide some of the work from him, he says.Did he perform illegal abortions? "I tried to help women, no matter the situation," says Ortiz. "Otherwise many women would have died." He doesn't want to say more.

Even before treating Beatriz, another case shaped him. It is 2012 when a 17-year-old girl comes to her clinic with kidney disease. She is 22 weeks pregnant and her body is in bad shape. "I knew that if she didn't have an abortion, she would die," says Ortiz. The parents, however, decide not to do it for fear of going to jail. When Ortiz tells this story, tears come to his eyes. The next morning, it was Friday, he clearly remembers, he was called to the hospital early. His condition was very bad. "He died in my arms," ​​says Ortiz. "And she would still be alive if she had an abortion."

It was a turning point for Ortiz. Something like this must never happen again, he thought.

One of the solutions that I can include is that a law be established in which these women in which the cases have been abused, raped or kidnapped, it seems to me that these protect them as much if the person who is going to give birth is in danger. of death since this would not be beneficial for her or for the baby since it would be orphaned I am not in favor of abortion but in these cases I think it is necessary that the law change for the good of our Salvadoran women and our families so that we can all live how it should be and not come to suffer in the world without help.