海角大神

Uruguay paved the way for one of the most far-reaching abortion rights laws in Latin America this week when its Senate voted to legalize the procedure during the first trimester of pregnancy. The controversial decision has sparked speculation as to whether regional neighbors 鈥� from liberal Argentina to conservative Chile 鈥� could follow suit.

Uruguay鈥檚 Senate vote on Wednesday put the southern cone nation 鈥渁t the forefront of countries that have established [these] rights,鈥� says V茅ronica P茅rez, a political scientist at Montevideo鈥檚 University of the Republic. President Jose Mujica, a former leftist guerrilla, is expected to sign the bill into law.

Though Uruguay is already considered one of the most liberal countries in the region 鈥� it was one of the first Latin American nations to officially separate the state from the Catholic church in the early 1900s, and it recently floated the idea of legalizing marijuana 鈥� the abortion debate has been met with considerable opposition.

This week鈥檚 vote was the third time the bill has been introduced in the Uruguayan Parliament and the Senate鈥檚 final vote tally of 17 in favor and 14 against shows how divisive the issue remains. A previous bill was approved in 2008, but then-President Tabar茅 V谩zquez vetoed it.

鈥淟egislation is a long, long process in a region where very few countries have decriminalized abortion,鈥� says Marta Alanis, a member of Argentina鈥檚 National Campaign for the Right to Abortion, based in C贸rdoba.

The regional climate

In Latin America, abortion is permitted only in Mexico City and Cuba. Uruguay鈥檚 larger neighbors, Brazil and Argentina, continue to ban the procedure unless the pregnancy is the result of a rape or the woman鈥檚 life is in danger. In Chile, abortion is illegal under all circumstances.

The Catholic church and the powerful pro-life lobby continue to be the major obstacles to change in legislated reproductive rights in Latin America. But politicians, too, are reluctant to tackle such a polemical hot potato.

鈥淎bortion isn鈥檛 an issue that political parties use to differentiate themselves in聽 Latin America,鈥� says Ms. P茅rez, the political scientist. 鈥淭his isn鈥檛 an issue that forms part of their campaigns. In reality, these are ideas that tend to divide the electorate and different social groups. There isn鈥檛 a consensus.鈥�

In contrast to divisions among politicians, however, a September survey by the polling firm CIFRA found that 52 percent of Uruguayans would vote in favor of the law if they could. Some 34 percent said they would vote against it. And the legalization movement is gathering strength in neighboring countries, including Argentina, where a parliamentary debate is likely to take place next year.

The topic has dominated Argentine media since March, when the Supreme Court declared that non-punishable abortions did not need to be approved by a judge. But problems remain and earlier this month a judge stepped in to stop a victim of sexual abuse from having an abortion in a Buenos Aires hospital.

But Uruguay鈥檚 new law has been criticized by some pro-choice groups for not going far enough: The law stipulates that women have to meet with a board of medical experts and explain the 鈥渆conomic, social, family, or age difficulties that in her view stand in the way of continuing the pregnancy,鈥� according to the bill. The board will explain the alternatives and the woman will then have five days to reflect on her decision. The bill鈥檚 conditions, some argue, don鈥檛 allow a woman to make her own free decision.

Ripple effects?

Despite its drawbacks, the law remains a landmark decision in Latin America, and is something pro-choice campaigners hope will have regional ripple effects.

But the road ahead may be long: Although there have been many advances in terms of sexual rights in Latin America 鈥� most notably with Brazil and Argentina legalizing same-sex unions in 2004 and 2010, respectively 鈥� abortion is extremely divisive.

鈥淚n terms of the reactions and conflicts [abortion and same-sex marriage] provoke in society,鈥� pushing same-sex unions isn鈥檛 the same as advocating the legalization of abortion, says P茅rez. 鈥淔or same-sex marriage or gay adoption, for some men it鈥檚 like 鈥榯hat鈥檚 OK, I don鈥檛 like it much but it doesn鈥檛 affect my rights,鈥欌�� she says. 鈥淥n the other hand, a woman鈥檚 decision to interrupt her pregnancy strikes at the core of masculine decision-influencing power.鈥�

For Ms. Alanis, the abortion rights campaigner, the cultural and historical similarities between Argentina and Uruguay mean that abortion legalization in Uruguay is bound to influence her country.

鈥淚 think we鈥檒l see a decriminalization of abortion before President Cristina Fern谩ndez de Kirchner finishes her mandate [in 2015],鈥� Alanis says.

But, if the abortion agenda is progressing in Argentina and Brazil, then Chile remains the exception, widely held to be the most conservative country in the region, where divorce was only legalized in 2004.

鈥淯ruguay legalizing abortion or Argentina granting same-sex marriages are solid international examples that show that in Chile we鈥檙e not mad if we want to approve divorce, gay marriage, or abortion,鈥� says Crist贸bal Bellolio, an academic at Santiago鈥檚 Adolfo Ib谩帽ez University.

The Uruguay ruling helps, Mr. Bellolio says. 鈥淲hat we鈥檙e doing is basically following a universal tendency [in legalizing liberal policies] that, far from destroying society, does exactly the opposite."聽

P茅rez says regional change is on the horizon. 鈥淓xperience has shown us that legislation tends to happen with one country following another,鈥� she explains. 鈥淚f you look at sexual equality laws in Latin America, they鈥檝e tended to advance in waves, too, with countries copying each other.鈥�