By Emma Batha
LONDON, May 12 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A Maltese
lawmaker made history on Wednesday by calling for the
decriminalisation of abortion in the Mediterranean island, which
has one of the world's strictest bans.
In the first such move to amend the country's tough abortion
laws, independent MP Marlene Farrugia presented a bill which
would remove criminal sanctions for women who seek terminations.
"It's a historic moment," said Lara Dimitrijevic, a lawyer
and director of the Women's Rights Foundation which campaigns on
abortion rights in Malta.
"It is not legalising abortion, but it is a very important
first step."
Malta is one of five countries in the world that outlaw
abortion in all circumstances, even when a woman's life is at
risk. The others are El Salvador, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic
and Vatican City.
Procuring an abortion, or helping someone to do so, is
punishable by up to three years in jail under Malta's criminal
code.
A doctor carrying out a termination faces up to four years
in prison and a permanent ban on practising medicine.
Abortion opponents in the Catholic country say life begins
at conception. But campaigners say the law does not stop women
having terminations and Malta must stop criminalising them.
The online newspaper MaltaToday described the bill as "a
bolt from the blue", adding Farrugia was not known as a
pro-choice politician.
Dimitrijevic said the surprise bill had immediately sparked
a huge outpouring of support on social media and many people had
started gathering outside parliament.
There is no date for when the bill will be debated in
parliament.
Although prosecutions are rare, campaigners say the law
impacts women's health and creates a climate of fear and
silence.
Abortion has long been a taboo issue in Malta, but attitudes
are becoming more liberal in the country, which has legalised
same-sex marriage and banned gay conversion therapy.
"Social attitudes are changing, particularly among the
young, and the Catholic Church does not have the influence it
once had," Dimitrijevic said.
Campaigners estimate 300 to 500 women in Malta seek
abortions every year. Many buy pills online while others travel
overseas for terminations, mostly to Britain and Italy.
With the COVID-19 lockdown preventing most travel,
Dimitrijevic said more women had resorted to buying abortion
pills online, which can be dangerous if they need medical
support and leaves them open to prosecution.
Women on Web, a Canadian organisation providing abortion
pills by post following online consultations, said it shipped
220 sets of pills to Malta last year.
About 60 women a year travel from Malta to Britain for an
abortion, according to UK government data.
Others pay about 2,000 to 3,000 euros ($2,400 to $3,620) for
an abortion in the Italian island of Sicily, to its north, via a
"tour guide" who takes them to a "clinic" after meeting them off
the ferry or plane, according to campaigners.
They say such abortions are probably illegal under Italian
law, which states terminations can only be performed in public
hospitals.
($1 = 0.8287 euros)
(Reporting by Emma Batha @emmabatha; Editing by Katy Migiro.
Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm
of Thomson Reuters, which covers the lives of people around the
world who struggle to live freely or fairly. Visit http://news.trust.org)