Australia:
Thousands of Australians took part in fierce protests across the country on Saturday against the US Supreme Court’s destruction of women’s constitutional right to abortion.
The Supreme Court last week overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling and restored individual states’ ability to ban abortion.
At the largest demonstration in Australia, about 15,000 women and men marched through Melbourne, carrying placards such as “I borrowed this sign from my grandmother” and “Everyone deserves the right to physical autonomy”.
“We are here to stand up for women’s rights in Australia and around the world. Millions of women in the United States have been deprived of their rights and we are angry about that,” said Liz Walsh, one of the organizers of the protest. in Melbourne.
Like now in the United States, in Australia abortion laws are set by states. The country’s most populous state, New South Wales, didn’t legalize abortion until 2019, the last state to do so.
The post-conception time limit for access to surgical abortion and the provision of abortion services varies from state to state, with some providing more access to public health care than others. South Australia bans private abortion clinics.
Protesters called for easier access across the country.
“I have come out today in solidarity with women and girls in America by protesting and advocating for their right of choice and that abortion is health care and every woman has the right to it,” said Melbourne protester Geraldine Bilston.