MEXICO LEGALIZES ABORTION

September 6, 2023 -Durt Fibo

Today, Mexico’s Supreme Court unanimously ruled that state laws against abortion are unconstitutional and violations of women’s rights. This victory, in a devoutly Catholic country, was the culmination of legal challenges from states unwilling to erase abortion from their penal codes. By the time of today’s final ruling, only 12 of the nation’s 31 states had decriminalized the procedure. Now, effective immediately, the Supreme Court decision will fully protect both women seeking abortions and healthcare workers involved the practice of it from criminal charges, including in all federal health facilities.

However, Mexico’s two congressional chambers will both need to codify legislation deleting penalties from the nation’s criminal code, and while that could be delayed, further support to expedite the process could come from the fact that the upcoming 2024 Presidential election’s foremost contenders are both women.

The statistically favored is former Mexico City mayor Claudia Sheinbaum of the ruling Morena Party, and her rival appears set to be Senator Xóchitl Gálvez. Sheinbaum is the preferred successor of still popular President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, while Gálvez will be the candidate of a coalition including PAN, PRI and PRD, the country’s three oldest – and outwelcomed – establishment parties.