User:Dml108/Reproductive rights in Latin America

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Latin America is home to some of the few countries of the world with a complete ban on abortion and minimal policies on reproductive rights, but it also contains some of the most progressive reproductive rights movements in the world.[1]

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History

Pre-colonial

Although little information exists on indigenous reproductive rights before the era of colonization, the same issues that persist today were also present back then, and the various diverse tribes of Latin America had varying positions on reproductive rights. [2] Many native women commonly used medicinal herbs and plants to induce abortions such as cinnamon, rosemary, fuzzy maidenhair, garlic, pineable, begonia, cedro, huela de noche, key lime, bitter orange, lemon, coriander, Zarzabacoa comun, epazote, climbing orchid cactus, pegarropa, cotton, scarlet bush, mohintli, oregano, Frangipani alhelí, salab, styrax, feverfew, and hierba amarga.[3] These methods were used when the last Aztec governor, Moctezuma Xocoyotzin, impregnated 150 women and mandated that they get abortions.[2] Another indigenous group, the Wichí, prioritized the mother's health and thus had a tradition of aborting the first pregnancy of each woman to make the next pregnancy safer.[4] In the Mexica society, women were expected to be celibate until they were married and were punished for homosexuality, abortions, and infanticide by death because being a mother was seen has the most important role a woman could have.[2]

Colonialism and religious traditions

When the European powers conquered and colonized Latin America, they brought with them the Catholic Church's beliefs on reproductive rights. [5] Even today, religion in Latin America is characterized by the predominance of Roman Catholicism, although there is also increasing Protestant influence (especially in Central America and Brazil) as well as by the presence of other world religions. Critics of the restrictive abortion laws of Latin America argue that this situation is created by the strong influence of the Catholic church in the region.[6] The Catholic Church believes that the only purpose of sex is for reproduction and thus do not traditionally believe in the use of contraceptives, birth control, or abortion, but rather they encourage abstinence until marriage.[7]

International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)

The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development defined reproductive health as noted above.[8] It also defined strategies and goals for advancing such reproductive health and rights in Latin America through what is called the Cairo Programme of Action (CPA). The CPA has three quantitative targets: (1) Reducing overall mortality, which implies an increase in life expectancy, reducing specific mortalities (2) Universal access to education, especially for girls (3) Universal access to reproductive health services, including family planning.[9] Adopted by the region at the conference, some improvements have been seen since the adoption of the CPA. Reproductive rights have become recognized in the constitutions of Bolivia, Ecuador and Venezuela.[10]

Millennium Development Goals in Latin America

The Millennium Development Goals are a descriptive framework by which to monitor response to eight specific goals. They were announced in the Millennium Declaration in September 2000. Whether or not a country is on track to meeting these goals—in the case of Latin America—is tracked by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). One particular goal in regard to reproductive health, Goal 5, seeks to improve maternal health within the region.[11] The first target of Goal 5 is to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters between 1990 and 2015. In order to assess the progress towards this goal, ECLAC monitors maternal mortality ratios and the proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel. The second target of Goal 5 is to achieve universal access to reproductive health by 2015. This target is assessed by viewing contraceptive prevalence rates, adolescent birth rates, antenatal care coverage and percentages of unmet need for family planning. In order to achieve these goals, many actions have been taken, including the growing institutionalization of deliveries and the increased number of personnel trained to provide care during childbirth and emergency obstetric care.[12]

1970's feminist movement

Women in Latin America first began advocating for abortion rights in the 1970's during the worldwide feminist movement. [13] This movement was propelled by the mass transition of many Latin American governments to democracies, thus opening the door to policy reform.[14] During this period, Cuba acted as an inspiration to many surrounding countries when it became the first Latin American country to legalize access to safe abortions in 1961.[15]

Marea verde

Inspired by the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo's use of white scarves during their protests, women in Argentina created the symbol of the green scarf to represent their pro-choice movement in 2003.[16] These distinct green scarves have become characteristic of what is known as the "Marea Verde" or "Green Wave", which has made it's way out of Argentina and across Latin America.[17]

Issues

Sexual violence

In Latin America, sexual violence including rape, assault, harassment, and femicide are prominent issues that impact a person's sexual and reproductive agency and autonomy.[18] Many regions in Latin America still force young girls to continue their pregnancies to term, even if was conceived through rape. [19] The common patriarchal structures within Latin American households make young girls especially vulnerable to pregnancy by rape perpetuated by a person close to them. [20]

Abortion

Abortion is a highly controversial aspect of reproductive rights. While every country in Latin America has differing laws and regulations regarding abortion, the general sentiment is that of disapproval. Abortions in Latin America have had a history of being unsafe and illegal (especially for poor women), with recent improvements in both of those areas. Most of these improvements can be attributed to modern contraception, emergency care, as well as education. Similarly, advocacy and national conflict has grown surrounding abortion rights in Latin America. The region has seen a steady increase of feminist abortion activists, despite religion making the issue taboo.

According to the World Health Organization, in 2008, approximately "4.2 million abortions were conducted in Latin America and the Caribbean, almost three-fourths of them in South America. Virtually all these procedures were illegal and many were unsafe."

In 2011, the number of unsafe abortions in Latin America rose to 4.2 million annually. Unsafe abortions account for a large proportion of maternal deaths. For example, in Argentina unsafe abortions account for 31% of the maternal mortality rate.

Strict abortion laws are accompanied by strict punishments. In El Salvador, for example, a woman can be jailed for up to 40 years for aborting while in Mexico, she could be jailed for up to 50 years. These punishments do not take into consideration the cause of the pregnancy, due to the fact that many of the imprisoned women were raped or had involuntary abortions

International legislations also have an effect on abortion rights in Latin America. When U.S. President Donald Trump reinstated the Global Gag Rule on January 23, 2017, he prohibited all U.S. federal money from funding international organizations such as NGOs that "perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning".

Genital mutilation

While genital mutilation is not an issue in all Latin American countries, Columbia, Peru, Brazil, and Mexico all have histories of female genital mutilation within indigenous groups.[21] The Embera and Nasa people in Columbia are the only groups in Latin America that are confirmed to still continue the practice. [22] They are known for type 1 genital mutilation, which includes the partial or total removal of the clitoral glans or clitoral hood.[23]

Forced sterilization

Due to the lack of education around reproductive health in Latin America, many HIV positive women are forced to get sterilizations by their healthcare providers. [24] In the early to mid 20th century, doctors in Puerto Rico forced or coerced 1 in 3 women into having sterilizations, claiming it was the only true form of contraception.[25]

Maternal mortality

Pregnancy and birth related death can be caused by severe bleeding during and after childbirth, pregnancy-induced high blood pressure, infections, obstructed labor, abortion complications, blood clots, and other factors.[26] These maternal deaths are mostly preventable with quality care, access to contraceptions, and decreasing disparities in reproductive healthcare.[27] Between 1990 and 2013, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Peru significantly reduced their maternal mortality rate, while in Cuba, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela, their maternal mortality rates increased. [26]To combat maternal mortality, the Pan American Health Organization launched the "Zero Maternal Deaths. Prevent the preventable" campaign to achieve the goal of less than 30 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in the Americas.[27]

Diseases

There is a distinct lack of information available to people with HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases, creating a stigma around infected individuals.[28] Besides STDs, the recent Zika outbreak in Latin America has exposed the disparities in healthcare, with pregnant women in poverty most likely to be infected by Zika, which can have devastating effects on the pregnancy and the baby.[29]

Disparities in healthcare

Socioeconomic inequities in Latin America can effect a person's access to sexual education, contraceptives, maternal healthcare, sexual healthcare, risk for maternal morbidity, and risk for sexual violence. [30] Indigenous women in particular face many barriers to accessing reproductive healthcare, resulting in high rates of adolescant pregnacy and unitended pregnancy.[31]

Trans women's rights

The stigma and discrimination around transgender people in Latin America can significantly increase their susceptibility to sexual violence and decrease their access to testing and treatment for STDs.[32]

Sexual education

Most schools in Latin American countries teach some form of sexual education, but it is usually only focused to the prevention of sexually-transmitted diseases rather than being a comprehensive education about sexual reproductive rights.[33] Due to the stigma around sex education, teachers in Brazil recieve backlash for teaching sex education, despite it being a law to teach it.[34]

Birth control/family planning

Despite family planning being one of the most cost-effective means to maintain reproductive rights, 214 million women in developing countries, including Latin American countries are still not using modern contraceptives due to a lack of education and access.[35]

Current Policies

Abortion

Caribbean

In Antigua and Barbuda, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life.[36] In Bahamas, abortion is only allowed in cases of rape, incest, fetal deformity, or endangerment to mother's life[37]. In Barbados, abortion is legal in cases of fetal impairment, or endangerment to mother's life, and is only allowed with an authorized health professional in a specially licensed facility.[38] In Cuba, abortion is allowed at the woman's request up to 12 weeks into the pregnancy, and is only allowed with an authorized health professional in a specially licensed facility.[38] In Dominica, abortion is completely banned. In Dominican Republic, abortion is completely banned. In Grenada, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life.[39] In Haiti, abortion is completely banned. In Jamaica, abortion is completely banned[40]. In Saint Kitts and Nevis, . In Saint Lucia, abortion is allowed in cases of police-reported rape, incest, or endangerment to mother's life, and is only allowed with an authorized health professional in a specially licensed facility. [38]In Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, abortion is allowed in cases of fetal impairment, rape, incest, or endangerment to mother's life, and is only allowed with an authorized health professional in a specially licensed facility.[38] In Trinidad and Tobago, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life.[38]

Central America

In Belize, abortion is only allowed in cases of fetal impairment or endangerment to mother's life, and is only allowed with the authorization of health professionals. [38]In Costa Rica, abortion is only legal in cases of therapeutic abortion. [38]In El Salvador, abortion is completely banned.[38] In Guatemala, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save mother's life. In Honduras, abortion is completely banned.[38] In Mexico, policies vary by state, with some allowing abortion at mother's request up to 12 or 13 weeks and others allowing in cases or fetal impairment, rape, incest, or endangerment to mother's life.[38] In Nicaragua, abortion is completely banned.[38] In Panama, abortion is allowed in cases of fetal impairment, endangerment to mother's life, or rape.[38]

South America

In Argentina, abortion is allowed at the woman's request up to 14 weeks into the pregnancy. In Bolivia, abortion is allowed in cases of rape, incest, or endangerment to mother's life. [38]In Brazil, abortion is only allowed in cases of rape or endangerment to mother's life and only allowed with the authorization of a health professional.[38] In Chile, abortion is only allowed in cases of rape or endangerment to mother's life and only allowed with the authorization of a health professional. [38]In Colombia, abortion is only allowed in cases of police-reported rape, incest, or endangerment to mother's life. [38]In Ecuador, abortion is allowed in cases of rape or endangerment to mother's life.[38] In Guyana, abortion is allowed at the woman's request up to 8 weeks into the pregnancy, and is only allowed with an authorized health professional in a specially licensed facility. [38]In Paraguay, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life. [38]In Peru, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life, and is only allowed with an authorized health professional in a specially licensed facility. [38]In Suriname, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life.[38] In Uruguay, abortion is allowed at the woman's request up to 12 weeks into the pregnancy and only allowed with the authorization of a health professional. [38]In Venezuela, abortion is only legal when it is performed to save the mother's life.[38]

References

References

  1. ^ "Chile abortion: Court approves easing total ban". BBC News. 21 August 2017.
  2. ^ a b c "Mexico: Abortion in ancient times". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  3. ^ Cabada-Aguirre, Paulina; López López, Alice M.; Mendoza, Keila C. Ostos; Garay Buenrostro, Karen D.; Luna-Vital, Diego A.; Mahady, Gail B. (2023-02-16). "Mexican traditional medicines for women's reproductive health". Scientific Reports. 13 (1): 2807. doi:10.1038/s41598-023-29921-1. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 9935858. PMID 36797354.
  4. ^ Andrews, Becca. "Abortion has always been a part of America—even if Alito won't admit it". Mother Jones. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  5. ^ Schwaller, John F. (2016-03-31), "The Church in Colonial Latin America", Latin American Studies, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/obo/9780199766581-0180, ISBN 978-0-19-976658-1, retrieved 2023-10-10
  6. ^ "Thank the Catholic church for terrifying abortion restrictions in Latin America | Erika L Sánchez". TheGuardian.com. 27 August 2013.
  7. ^ Currie, Alistair (2022-01-11). "From pulpit to politics: the Catholic Church's influence on reproductive rights". Population Matters. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  8. ^ "The International Conference on Population, 1984". Population and Development Review. 10 (4): 755. December 1984. doi:10.2307/1973310. ISSN 0098-7921.
  9. ^ "Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean: Review of the period 2009-2013 and lessons learned" (PDF). Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.
  10. ^ Richardson, Emma; Anne-Emanuelle Birn (2011). "Sexual and Reproductive health and rights in Latin America: an analysis of trends, commitments and achievements". Reproductive Health Matters. 19 (38): 183–187. doi:10.1016/S0968-8080(11)38597-7. PMID 22118152. S2CID 206112810.
  11. ^ "MDG Goals, targets and indicators". Millennium Development Goals in Latin America and the Caribbean. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.
  12. ^ "Maternal Mortality in Central America: The need to accelerate efforts by 2035". The Maternal Health Task Force. Archived from the original on 2014-04-29.
  13. ^ Writer, Liz Mineo Harvard Staff (2022-10-26). "Lesson from Latin America for U.S. abortion rights movement". Harvard Gazette. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  14. ^ Kane, Gillian (2008). "Abortion Law Reform in Latin America: Lessons for Advocacy". Gender and Development. 16 (2): 361–375. ISSN 1355-2074.
  15. ^ Manzaneda, José (2023-10-02). "Right to abortion in Cuba under attack by counter-revolutionaries". People's World. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  16. ^ Jul 3, Samantha Schmidt |; 2022. "How green became the color of abortion rights". Washington Post. Retrieved 2023-10-10. {{cite web}}: |last2= has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ "Why we continue to march towards legal abortion in Argentina". Amnesty International. 2019-08-08. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  18. ^ Caribbean, Economic Commission for Latin America and the. "ECLAC: At Least 4,473 Women Were Victims of Femicide in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2021". www.cepal.org. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  19. ^ Casas, Ximena (2019). "They Are Girls, Not Mothers: The Violence of Forcing Motherhood on Young Girls in Latin America". Health and Human Rights. 21 (2): 157–167. ISSN 2150-4113. PMC 6927362. PMID 31885445.
  20. ^ "Ending Sexual Violence in Latin America and the Caribbean". Equality Now. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  21. ^ "FGM in the Americas". Equality Now. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  22. ^ "'Cut with a blade': Colombia indigenous groups discuss FGM". BBC News. 2016-10-12. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  23. ^ "Female genital mutilation". www.who.int. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  24. ^ Avenue, 677 Huntington; Boston; Ma 02115 (2014-07-23). "Under pressure: Latin American women face forced sterilization". News. Retrieved 2023-10-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  25. ^ Presch, Stephanie; UnidosUS (2021-12-16). "The long history of forced sterilization of Latinas". UnidosUS. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  26. ^ a b Mitchell, Cristina (2014). "PAHO/WHO | 11 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have reduced maternal mortality, new UN data show". Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  27. ^ a b "PAHO and partners launch campaign to reduce maternal mortality in Latin America and the Caribbean - PAHO/WHO | Pan American Health Organization". www.paho.org. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  28. ^ Lee, Amy S.D.; Cody, Shameka L. (2020). "The Stigma of Sexually Transmitted Infections". Nursing Clinics of North America. 55 (3): 295–305. doi:10.1016/j.cnur.2020.05.002.
  29. ^ Roa, Mónica (2016). "Zika virus outbreak: reproductive health and rights in Latin America". The Lancet. 387 (10021): 843. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(16)00331-7. ISSN 0140-6736.
  30. ^ "Large disparity in access to contraceptive methods reflects social inequities in Latin American and Caribbean countries - PAHO/WHO | Pan American Health Organization". www.paho.org. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  31. ^ Wurtz, Heather (2012). "Indigenous Women of Latin America: Unintended Pregnancy, Unsafe Abortion, and Reproductive Health Outcomes". Pimatisiwin. 10 (3): 271–282. ISSN 1705-7841. PMC 3679907. PMID 23772229.
  32. ^ "Claiming rights for transgender people in Latin America and the Caribbean". www.unaids.org. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  33. ^ "Comprehensive Sex Education: A Pending Task in Latin America". www.globalissues.org. 2014-09-25. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  34. ^ "Brazil: Attacks on Gender and Sexuality Education | Human Rights Watch". 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  35. ^ "Home". www.oecd-ilibrary.org. Retrieved 2023-10-13.
  36. ^ Ghosh, Ujjayani (2022-07-08). "Antigua and Barbuda Abortion Law". Global Citizen Solutions. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  37. ^ "The Bahamas: Legalising abortions not on the government's agenda | Loop Caribbean News". Loop News. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  38. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "GAPD - The Global Abortion Policies Database - The Global Abortion Policies Database is designed to strengthen global efforts to eliminate unsafe abortion". Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  39. ^ Al-Jaroudi, Dania. "Physician Perceptions on the Prevalence of Illegal Abortions in Grenada". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  40. ^ "Jamaica". Guttmacher Institute. 2021-04-08. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
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