A Government that Guarantees the Just Cause Ruling

A GOVERNMENT THAT GUARANTEES

THE JUST CAUSE RULING

Ruling C-055 of 2022 represents a win for the right to voluntary termination of pregnancy (VTP) and positions Colombia in the global vanguard in recognizing women’s autonomy, freedom, and self-determination.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MESA POR LA VIDA Y LA SALUD DE LAS MUJERES

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n February 21, 2022 the country learned of the Constitutional Court ruling that expanded abortion rights, allowing women and gestating persons to terminate a pregnancy through week twenty-four, according to their own reasons and without the threat of imprisonment. For pregnant peoples seeking to terminate a pregnancy after this period, this ruling preserved the three grounds for VTP previously established by Ruling C-355 of 2006: i) when the pregnancy represents a risk to the health or life of the woman; ii) when the fetus presents a malformation that makes life outside the womb inviable; and iii) when the pregnancy is the result of sexual violence or incest.

Guaranteeing compliance with Ruling C-055 of 2022 and creating a comprehensive public policy will be tasks of the current government.

This legal decision gave rise to the Just Cause Ruling (C-055) which exhorts Congress and the national government to formulate and implement a comprehensive political policy as soon as possible to prevent violations of the rights and dignity of women and gestating persons.

Without a doubt, this achievement by the Just Cause movement represents a win for VTP rights and positions Colombia in the global vanguard in recognizing the autonomy, freedom, and self-determination of women, with the partial elimination of the crime of abortion from the Penal Code. It will therefore be the current government’s responsibility to defend and protect it.

CHALLENGES TO ACCESSING SAFE AND TIMELY ABORTIONS

Two of the greatest challenges for the current administration’s first year will be to guarantee comprehensive compliance with this ruling and formulate a public policy that at least includes clear disclosure of the options available to a gestating woman before and after her pregnancy, and the existence of ways to prevent pregnancy, including birth control. The policy must also include the development of sexual and reproductive education programs and demand paths to healthcare access and mandatory protocols for the General System of Social Security in Healthcare to ensure timely abortion access.

It will likewise be necessary to halt any action taken by anti-rights groups aiming to contradict or nullify what the High Court has recognized. For example, two initiatives have been identified which aim to modify the Political Constitution via referendum so that abortion is once again outlawed and the Constitutional Court’s rulings are nullified. This would mean a total setback in human rights in that it entails not recognizing that women are subjects of law, fully capable of making decisions about their bodies and life projects.

Eliminating obstacles to VTP access which hinder women’s full enjoyment of their rights will also be a fundamental task in the coming years. According to assessments of the first 100 days following the historic ruling, made by

La Mesa por la Vida y la Salud de las Mujeres and Fundación Oriéntame, between February 22 and May 31, 2022 there was a 52% increase in cases registered by La Mesa compared to the previous year. The number of women seeking to access VTP is expected to continue to rise.

For this reason, addressing obstacles associated with ignorance of the current legal framework as well as restrictive interpretations of the law which affect the provision of this healthcare service will be fundamental to advancing guarantees for this right, especially in migrant women who must receive timely, respectful, quality, and dignified abortion services, regardless of their migratory status.

support of social and cultural transformations that legitimize their full realization; yet when it comes to abortion, social decriminalization advances at a slower pace and faces considerable challenges. According to the analysis of several public perception surveys carried out by the agency Cifras y Conceptos, between 2017 and 2021 the percentage of individuals who reject the idea that women who have abortions should be incarcerated has increased considerably. In 2021, 49% The first 100 days following of the population was against imprisonment the ruling saw a 52% while those who were increase in cases registered indifferent to the issue made up 18% (the latter by La Mesa compared with representing a decrease the same period last year. since 2017, when the percentage was 26%.) These results are coherent with a society that is more in favor of actions or policies focused on information and the prevention and promotion the issues of sexual and reproductive rights, rather than one that supports the use of penal law to criminalize women. It is, nevertheless, still necessary to create conditions that legitimize women’s decisions regarding abortion and eliminate the stigma and prejudice around the issue. From there is it imperative to provide clear and correct information to combat false beliefs and enable progress in building a country that fully recognizes women’s freedom and autonomy. FM

THE PATH TOWARD SOCIAL DECRIMINALIZATION

Legal advances in the protection and guarantee of rights require the

References

Movimiento Causa Justa

Balance de los 100 días del fallo histórico

La Mesa por la Vida y la Salud de las Mujeres