Social Justice & Action
US abortion bombshell has international ramifications
Critics say the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn abortion rights was dictated by politics rather than evidence-based health opinion.
The move by the US Supreme Court to reverse the historic Roe v. Wade decision – which recognised that a pregnant woman’s right to choose an abortion was protected under the constitution – has global implications, health experts say.
Health organisations are concerned that the decision could increase pressure on healthcare workers who perform abortions, and threaten hard-won gains in countries where stigma around terminations is still strong.
“The fallout from this calculated decision will also reverberate worldwide,” said Dr Alvaro Bermejo, director of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF).
“The justices who put their personal beliefs ahead of American will, precedent and law will soon have blood on their hands, and we are devastated for the millions of people who will suffer from this cruel judgment.”
Dr Jeanne Conry, president of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), said the impact of the decision would be “felt on a global scale”.
“The United States now is out of step with the rest of the world, and fails to take into account the overwhelming global medical evidence that supports abortion as essential health care,” she said.
UNFPA, the UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency, said it feared that if women faced greater barriers to getting terminations, more unsafe abortions would occur, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.