GRSJ224/abortioninindia

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Abortion in India

Introduction

Abortion has always been a relatively taboo subject in India, whether it be due to the stigma that sex and sexuality is riddled with, or the fact that the Indian public health system fails to provide safe and adequate abortion services for women in all parts of India. As women’s primary role in society is only recognized to bear children, when it comes to the topic of abortion, it is even more stigmatized, creating a silence around the topic[1]. As of 2019, it is estimated that around 15.6 million abortions are performed every year; however, at least ten of these women die every day due to unsafe abortion tactics[2]. Even with India's abortion law, the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act being passed in 1971, the implementation of this act has been done enacted so poorly, resulting in extreme rates of morbidity and mortality to this day.

The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act

Prior to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act being introduced in 1971, the Indian Penal Code viewed abortion as a criminal offence, unless it was performed due to the woman’s deteriorating condition and to save her life[3]. Once the MTP Act was put forth, abortion became legalized in India, but only under certain conditions did it become acceptable. These conditions include: the pregnant woman must be facing the potential of having a child that suffers severe mental and physical abnormalities; the abortion must be performed within the 20-week gestational period, or the pregnancy could lead to the mother's life being put at risk or could cause her significant injuries[4]. The woman must also be at least 18 years old, and the abortion must be conducted by a medically trained gynaecologist with three years of experience. Lastly, if the pregnancy was caused by sexual assault or due to a contraceptive failure in a married woman, an abortion can then take place.

Factors Contributing to Unsafe Abortion Methods in India

Stigma

The stigma around the word 'abortion' itself is significant and considered shameful, and is usually replaced with other words like 'incident' and 'misfortune' to not offend people. Thus, you can imagine how stigmatized accessing safe abortion clinics and methods are for an Indian woman. The 'ideal' Indian woman is told to not be sexually active before marriage, and to not abort unborn children[5]. The stigma that revolves around the act of abortion makes women feel shameful, leaving them no possibility to exercise their voice and their human rights. The result of Indian women having to grapple with this stigma can lead them to seek out unsafe abortion procedures or access help from illegal providers outside health facilities.

Gender Discrimination

In India, the gender roles that exist in society peg women to be child bearers and nothing more. For centuries, women have been expected to just remain at home and take care of their families, and not pursue different career paths. In the case of abortion and whenever that is discussed and decided in a marriage, the woman tends consult her husband, as it sometimes believed that men should only decide whether or not his wife should have an abortion or not[6]. There is absolutely no agency for India women in making their own decisions regarding their reproductive health. With them having no right to choose, this can result in them going behind their husbands’ backs and pursuing risky abortion methods. 

Low Socio-Economic Status of Women

Many Indian women that are financial unstable are forced to access cheap abortion methods that can be fatal for them. With them being financially insecure, they also have no access to proper family planning measures. Overall, socio-economic vulnerability and women having inadequate access to healthcare and abortion services leave Indian women at a tremendous risk of deaths related to dangerous abortion techniques[7].

Lack of Awareness About Reproductive Rights

Part of the reason that India’s death toll has increased to ten deaths per day due to abortion-related issues is because 80% of women are unaware of the abortions laws and the legal procedures in India. Indian women are not aware of the rights they possess under the MTP Act. Women’s lack of awareness remains one of the major reasons that they are not accessing safe abortion methods in India. Organizations such as Love Matters India and Asia Safe Abortion Partnership (ASAP) have been working to not only end the stigma revolved around abortion, but also to raise awareness about abortions.

References

  1. Chatterjee, Rhitu (October 2, 2014). "Abortion in India is Legal Yet Women are Still Dying". NPR. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  2. Hodges, Mark (July 19, 2019). "India Has One of the Highest Abortion Rates in the World". Human Life International. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  3. Patel, Tulsi (January 17, 2018). "Experiencing abortion rights in India through issues of autonomy and legality: A few controversies". Global Public Health. 13: 702–710 – via Taylor & Francis Online.
  4. Pockets, Hidden (September 12, 2019). "Stigma and Lack of Awareness: Single Women's access to Safe Abortions in India". Hidden Pockets. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  5. Mabiyan, Rashmi (June 7, 2019). "India's 'Conditional' Right to Abortion". The Economic Times. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  6. Dasgupta; et al. (January 1, 2019). "Pro-life or pro-abortion - Women's attitude toward abortion in Darjeeling, India". Medicine and Health Sciences. 7 – via Gale Onefile. Explicit use of et al. in: |last= (help)
  7. Yokoe; et al. (March 28, 2019). "Unsafe abortion and abortion-related death among 1.8 million women in India" (PDF). BMJ Global Health. Retrieved November 25, 2019. Explicit use of et al. in: |last= (help)