After the favorable vote of the deputies, all eyes are now on the upper chamber, deemed to be more conservative. The vote should take place overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
Le Monde avec AFP
Already approved by the deputies, a law legalizing abortion in Argentina will be debated, Tuesday, December 29, in the Senate where the balance of power between the “for” and “against” suggests intense discussions and a very close vote.
In 2018 , the senators had already rejected by seven votes a similar text which authorized the voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion) up to fourteen weeks of pregnancy, in a country still very Catholic and deeply divided on the issue. For the time being, abortion is only allowed in cases of rape or danger to the mother’s life, according to a law dating from 1921.
After the favorable vote of the deputies on December 11 – 131 votes in favor, 117 against and 6 abstentions – all eyes are now on the Upper House, deemed more conservative. The parliamentary session will begin at 4 p.m. local (8 p.m. in Paris) and the vote should take place overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
Center-left president Alberto Fernandez, in power since the end of 2018, had promised during his campaign to resubmit the legalization of abortion to parliamentarians. “I am a Catholic, but I must legislate for everyone, it is a very serious public health issue,” the Head of State recently argued. But not all of the senators in their majority are in favor of the text.
Gatherings of pro and anti-abortion
Despite the pandemic due to the coronavirus, pro and anti-abortion activists have planned to gather outside Parliament on Tuesday to express their support or rejection of the text.
The Catholic Church and Evangelicals called to “unite in imploring respect and care for the unborn life”, with a day of fasting and prayer. Recognizable by their sky blue scarf, the opponents plan to pray in front of Parliament until the announcement of the result.
For their part, the pro-abortion, rallied around the color green, have made a intense campaign on social networks. In particular the Campaign for a legal, safe and free abortion, which brings together more than 300 feminist organizations, already very mobilized in 2018.
“The strategy of criminalization, stigmatization, restriction of freedoms suffered historically women and the bodies of pregnant women, has lasted long enough! “, launched on social networks Fabiola Heredia, director of the Anthropology Museum of the University of Cordoba (center).
Only 70 Senators, out of 72, are expected to participate in the vote: one senator was suspended after a sexual assault complaint and 90-year-old ex-President Carlos Menem (1989-1999) known for his anti-abortion stance is hospitalized . In the event of a tie, the former president (2008-2015) and current vice-president Cristina Kirchner, in favor of abortion, should participate in the vote, as provided by law.
Financial support to mothers
According to the government, between 370,000 and 520,000 clandestine abortions are performed each year in the country of 44 million inhabitants, where 38,000 women are hospitalized for complications from clandestine abortions . To try to convince the senators to vote for the text, it includes the possibility for doctors to assert their “conscientious objection”.
At the same time, another bill, which will also be debated on Tuesday by senators, created an allowance of “1000 days” intended to support mothers during their pregnancy and the first years of child, so as to reduce abortions for economic reasons.
If the text on legalization is adopted, Argentina would join Cuba, Uruguay, Guyana and the province of Mexico, the only ones to authorize abortion without conditions in Latin America. In 2010, the South American country authorized same-sex marriage and approved in 2012 and a law on gender identity.