28 September 2024: Access to safe abortion is a fundamental human right and essential for women’s empowerment, equality and dignity. While abortion is a quick and safe medical procedure, women continue to die in large numbers because of unsafe practices.
To mark International Safe Abortion Day, celebrated annually on 28th September, members of the Safe Abortion Alliance of Southern Africa (SAASA) hosted a dialogue on what we need to do to improve women’s access to safe abortion as prescribed by the laws in Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) countries.
Africa is guided by the Maputo Protocol (Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa) adopted by the African Union in 2003. It is the first treaty anywhere in the world to recognise abortion, under certain conditions, as a reproductive right of women.
Laws on abortion in SADC range from being legal on demand, as in South Africa and Mozambique, to complete criminalisation in Madagascar. Panellists from five countries with different abortion laws and interpretations described the obstacles that persist for women when trying to access safe abortion within their laws.
Lynette Mudekunye, author of the Safe Abortion chapter of the upcoming Voice and Choice SADC Barometer, noted that “In every country in the world, women of all ages and socio-economic means will at some point decide that they are not able to carry a pregnancy to term for many different reasons. Once a woman decides to have an abortion, she will find a way to do it”.
The statistics are startling; it is estimated that 8 million abortions occur in Africa every year – a quarter are safe, a quarter are unsafe, and half are least safe. Africa has the highest rates of abortion-related deaths of any region in the world. The global average death rate from unsafe abortion is 103 deaths per 100,000 unsafe abortions; it is 220 in Africa.
In Malawi, which partially complies with the Maputo Protocol’s abortion provisions, Zaithwa Katherine Milanzi of the Young Women’s Consortium on SRHR in Malawi pointed out that one of the biggest challenges to women accessing any SRH services is the lack of resources from national-level health budget to the resources available to women at the household level. Milanzi highlighted climate disasters as a particular challenge to accessing SRHR in a country that is vulnerable to cyclones and drought. In times of disaster, women’s SRHR compete for available resources amidst shortages of many essential goods and services. While she welcomed the newly enacted Disaster Management Act 2023, she lamented that the Act does not specifically mention access to SRHR in disaster management.
Lesotho, where abortions are permitted in compliance with the Maputo Protocol, has the highest maternal mortality ratio in SADC. According to Refiloe Harris of She Hive, an NGO in Lesotho, stigma, stereotypes, and religious, cultural and social norms are the biggest barriers for women and girls in accessing safe abortion.
Hilda Dadu from the Coalition for Women Human Rights Defenders shared that, in Tanzania, termination of pregnancies resulting from sexual assault, rape and incest is not permitted, causing life-long physical and mental trauma. It is estimated that one million women have unintended pregnancies, of which 39% end in abortion.
South Africa is one of only two countries in SADC where abortion is available legally on request. However, women continue to die as a result of unsafe abortions. Judiac Ranape, an abortion provider in the Western Cape, explained that the interplay between morals, ethics and legal duties creates barriers for women to access safe abortion. She says, “The dearth of abortion providers undermines the availability of safe, legal abortion, making it easier for unscrupulous abortion providers to thrive.”
There is an urgent need for a multi-sectoral and multipronged approach to addressing these challenges that includes working with local partners, families, men and policymakers to advocate for decriminalisation of abortion and to protect women’s right to safe abortion services. Conduct outreach and educational campaigns to raise awareness about safe abortion and combat stigma and misinformation. Connect women with support services, including information to access safe, self-managed medication abortion, counselling and post-abortion care to ensure their overall well-being.
By working together with local communities, governments, and healthcare providers, we can create a future where all women can make decisions about their bodies and futures. We stand in solidarity in our communities, highlighting the collective efforts of our diverse, intergenerational, and cross-border community in advancing the right to access safe abortion and reproductive justice. As we face persistent and emerging threats to abortion rights and reproductive justice, we unite in #AbortionSolidarity to uphold and advance these fundamental freedoms.
For more information, please contact Tafadzwa Ngorima, Feminist Funding and Networking Manager, Tel: +27 11 029 0006, grants.finance@genderlinks.org.za Or Susa