DailyExpertNews
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Miriam has seen her share of risky surgeries and procedures in her years as a veteran physician in the Philippines — but none have been as “complicated or as dangerous” as abortions, she said.
“We take big risks when we agree to have an abortion,” said Miriam, who uses an alias to protect herself from persecution in the Philippines. She has performed four abortions on women aged 23 to 48 – all in secret.
Abortion has been illegal in the Philippines – a predominantly Catholic country and former American colony – for more than a century. Under the law, women who have aborted their fetuses face prison terms ranging from two to six years.
Doctors and nurses caught performing abortions or providing aid are also severely punished by the state. “We are at risk of losing our medical licenses and would also have to appear in court,” Miriam said.
Prosecution for abortion is now a risk to millions of women in the United States after the Supreme Court’s overturn of Roe v. Wade’s 1973 ruling that made seeking termination a constitutional right. Now states have control over laws governing abortion — and some have banned the procedure outright.
In the Philippines, many women look for other solutions to unwanted or non-viable pregnancies, regardless of the risks.
Attorney Clara Rita Padilla, a spokeswoman for the Philippine Safe Abortion Advocacy Network (PINSAN), said that while there are “progressive interpretations” of the abortion law in the Philippines, there are There are no clear exceptions that allow termination of pregnancies, even in severe cases such as rape and incest, or to save the life of the pregnant woman.
A study conducted by PINSAN in 2020 found that 1.26 million abortions were performed in the country, “endangering the lives and health of Filipino women.” And that figure is expected to grow. Another study from the University of the Philippines estimates that 1.1 million abortions occur in the country every year.
Padilla said most of the women who had had abortions came from poorer financial backgrounds, and many were under the age of 25. Lacking legal services, women often turned to dangerous underground abortions performed by midwives, healers and untrained doctors in makeshift clinics. said.
“The Philippines is a product of very conservative religious beliefs. For us, abortion bans are already a reality – and it is women from poor families and minority groups who suffer the most.”
Abortion rights activists in the US reacted with outrage to the Supreme Court ruling. But for those rooted in conservative Catholic beliefs or evangelical principles, Roe’s end wasn’t just a political victory — it was a spiritual one.
This sense of jubilation was also felt in the Philippines, where the Catholic Church wields great power and influence. Local church leaders and groups that publicly condemn abortion, divorce and the use of modern contraceptives welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision.
“The US Supreme Court’s decision to ban abortion is good news,” Crispin Varquez, a local bishop and prelate of the Catholic Church in the Philippines, said in an interview on Radio Veritas Asia, a church-run station in Quezon City. .
Varquez said the move was “timely” as it coincided with sacred celebrations for the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
“(It is) a decision enlightened by the Holy Spirit,” he said.
Pope Francis described abortion as “hiring a hit man” and said he respected the Supreme Court’s decision.
“It’s a lifetime — that’s science,” he told Reuters. “The moral question is whether it is right to take a human life to solve a problem.”
The shame many Filipino women feel about having abortions is often reinforced by their Catholic culture.
“The Catholic Church is propagating the story that abortion is murder,” said Marevic Parcon, another founding member of PINSAN. Like most Filipino women, Parcon was raised Catholic. She said religion had shaped her views on abortion very early on. “When you went to church, you were always taught to be afraid of abortions,” she said.
“Nuns showed us videos of late-stage abortions — it was that awful control they had over your psyche and emotions.”
The Philippine Catholic Church and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) did not respond to DailyExpertNews’s requests for comment.
But as great as the stigma, some women — like Kristy, who also uses an alias for fear of prosecution — conclude that they have little choice but to seek out so-called backstreets or illegal abortions.
The mother of four kept her abortion a secret from her husband and family because she knew “they would never allow it.”
“They would just force me to keep the baby and we are already struggling to feed our four children,” she said. “How can we afford to raise a fifth?”
She has not used any form of contraception and her husband does not use condoms. Access to other forms of contraception, such as birth control pills and IUDs, was also excluded. “I can’t imagine how much that would cost,” she said. “I wouldn’t know how to get or use them.”
So when she became pregnant, she sought the help of a midwife and paid her 550 pesos ($10) for a “healing massage.”
She described being held by the midwife’s assistant while she was at work, kneading and pounding her abdomen, eventually leading to a miscarriage. “It was messy and so awful,” Kristy said. “The pain was so unbearable and all I could do was scream. I still sleep badly.”
“I feel so guilty, but I know my family is better for this,” she added.
Opponents say it is time for the Philippines to remove “inhumane provisions” from the abortion law and finally decriminalize abortion to save women’s lives.
“These regulations have only led to a silent epidemic of unsafe abortions that have cost the lives of so many Filipino women,” said the country’s senator, Risa Hontiveros. new opposition leader. “We should also not send women to prison after such difficult and painful experiences.”
The practice of unsafe underground abortions had to end, Hontiveros said. She also reiterated the importance of destigmatizing abortion as a national step for the country.
“Women need to be vigilant in protecting our rights and freedoms, especially amid the rise of authoritarianism and religious fundamentalism in many countries around the world,” Hontiveros said. “I fully support the drive to decriminalize abortion under Philippine laws.”
In an interview held earlier in January, then-presidential hopeful Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed his views on abortion and said he would legalize it for “serious cases.”
“I think if it can be shown that (victims) were raped and it wasn’t consensual sex that got them pregnant, they should have the choice to abort or not. The other might be incest,” said Marcos Jr., who has since been elected president.
He also said he was “more concerned about deaths from unsafe abortions” than about opposition from church leaders. “It’s a woman’s decision because it’s her body.”
Proponents and lawmakers welcomed his liberal stance on abortion. “Restricting abortion doesn’t stop it, it actually makes it more dangerous and we’ve seen this happen all over the world,” PINSAN’s Parcon said.
“Marcos brought it up during his election campaign and for us this was the furthest we’ve reached yet, and if he says he’ll make it a priority then we need to hold him accountable.”
Senator Hontiveros said she welcomed the new president’s “openness” in supporting changes to Philippine abortion laws.
“This gives hope that we can soon decriminalize abortion and reform our laws, taking into account the realities facing Filipino women and families,” she said.
“However, I (wait) to see if his words reflect a genuine commitment to upholding women’s rights. For the sake of Filipino women everywhere, I hope they do.”
