Dutch Boat Handing Out Abortion Pills at Sea Hopes to Make Waves in Mexico Anastasia Moloney - Thomson Reuters Foundation
go to original April 22, 2017

A Dutch boat carrying abortion pills for women has anchored off the coast of Mexico, a move campaigners hope will draw attention to the country's stringent abortion laws and the barriers faced by women seeking to end their pregnancies.

The boat, operated by Dutch non-profit group Women on Waves, provides free abortion services for women up to nine weeks pregnant in international waters near countries where abortion is banned or restricted.

Abortion is legal in Mexico in cases of rape. Across Mexico each state has different laws allowing for abortion under certain circumstances, and the procedure is legal on demand in Mexico City during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

On board, women are given abortion pills and remain under observation for a few hours before returning to shore on small vessels. The female crew does not perform surgical abortions.

So far several women have been given abortion pills on the boat, anchored off Mexico's southern state of Guerrero along the Pacific coast since Thursday. The boat will remain there until Sunday, GIRE said.

The abortion pill - also known as a medical abortion — combines two medicines - mifepristone and misoprostol - that induce a miscarriage.

Recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a safe and effective way to terminate pregnancy, every year around 26 million women worldwide use this drug combination, the WHO says.

Women who do not live in Mexico City, where abortion has been legal since 2007, along with women who cannot afford to travel to the capital risk their lives by having illegal and often unsafe abortions, rights groups say.

The boat's last voyage in February to Guatemala sparked controversy after it was detained by Guatemala's army, preventing crew from picking up women seeking to end their pregnancies.



Read the rest at Thomson Reuters Foundation

Related: Over 14,000 Women Are Raped in Mexico Every Year: Amnesty International Report (teleSUR)

Related: Why El Salvador’s Total Ban on Abortion Could Finally Change This Week (Newsweek)

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