Abortion in Portugal, a right not always guaranteed despite law

Lisbon (Portugal), Nov 18 (EFE) - Although it was decriminalized in 2007, access to abortion still faces barriers in Portugal, where about 30% of public hospitals do not perform it, there is no register of conscientious objector doctors and it is only allowed up to 10 weeks of gestation, one of the most restrictive deadlines in Europe.

Two legislative projects of the Socialist Party and the Left Bloc want to solve these problems, regulate conscientious objection and extend the deadlines to 12 or 14 weeks, to alleviate the obstacle course that some women go through to terminate their pregnancies.

CAMERA: ROCÍO MUÑOZ AND PAULA FERNÁNDEZ

FOOTAGE OF THE CLÍNICA DOS ARCOS, A CLINIC IN LISBON WHERE PREGNANCY TERMINATIONS ARE PERFORMED. INCLUDES AN INTERVIEW WITH THE FOUNDER OF THE ESCOLHA ASSOCIATION, PATRÍCIA CARDOSO.

Translations:

1. We support exclusively during voluntary termination of pregnancy. why? Because it is something that is failing in our public health service and it is also shrouded in a lot of taboo and a lot of guilt. The issue is not talked about, the law is not enforced. And women and pregnant women are the ones who suffer, because the law is very restrictive.

2- I founded Escolha because I had a personal experience of voluntary termination of pregnancy during the pandemic and I experienced firsthand the obstacles placed in our way in the public service. One hospital told me not to do it, the hospital in the city where I was. It is very serious. And I had to resort to other services, to the private one, to be able to move forward with my right and my choice.

3. Many women have deep traumas and others died because abortion was illegal until 2007. In 2007 I was almost finishing college. I have friends who went to Spain to have an abortion at that time. And it is incredible that after the law, after almost 20 years of the law, there are still people who go to Spain. So we have not evolved that much.