Guerrero becomes ninth Mexican state to decriminalize abortion
The Mexican state of Guerrero recently passed legislation to decriminalize abortion, making it the ninth of the country’s 32 federal entities to allow abortion. The measure, which removes the punishment of jail time for abortion, passed with a 30-13 vote.
Previously, abortion in Guerrero was outlawed and punishable with up to three years in prison, except in cases where the mother was raped or faced health risks (although there is no reason why intentionally killing a preborn child should be allowed for rape, and it’s never medically necessary). According to Reuters, the move now allows abortions for any reason up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. Anyone who helps a woman procure an abortion after that time still faces penalties.
“As a legislator, I can’t judge a single woman for the decision she makes. Women are free to make their own decisions,” said lawmaker Beatriz Mojica, who helped introduce the bill.
Fronteras reported that while other Mexican states have decriminalized abortion, Guerrero is the first to completely eliminate criminal penalties for the women who seek abortions.
“And that is incredibly important in Mexico as precedent, but also considering that Guerrero is a state with high levels of violence in general, of poverty and precarity for women,” said Isabel Fulda, assistant director of GIRE, an organization focused on reproductive rights. “So we’re just incredibly glad to see this in Guerrero, and for what it symbolizes in Mexico, in Latin America, and now in the United States as well.”
Fulda and others have been advocating for abortion as a way to help rape victims, but others in the country recognize that abortion only puts these victims in greater danger of abuse. Ricardo Cano, an advisor for the organization National Front for the Family, recently told the Los Angeles Times that he fears that decriminalizing abortion “will leave the girls more vulnerable than ever.”
“To really eradicate the problem, you have to go after the victimizers, go after the rapists,” he said. “If Guerrero’s laws don’t subject these people to stronger sentences, the problem will still be there.”
Guerrero’s ruling comes after a September 2021 federal Supreme Court ruling which said that laws criminalizing abortion were unconstitutional.
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
Dear Reader,
Every day in America, more than 2,800 preborn babies lose their lives to abortion.
That number should break our hearts and move us to action.
Ending this tragedy requires daily commitment from people like you who refuse to stay silent.
Millions read Live Action News each month — imagine the impact if each of us took a stand for life 365 days a year.
Right now, we’re urgently seeking 500 new Life Defenders (monthly donors) to join us before the end of October. And thanks to a generous $250,000 matching grant, your first monthly gift will be 3X MATCHED to help save lives and build a culture that protects the preborn.
Will you become one of the 500 today? Click here now to become a Live Action Life Defender and have your first gift TRIPLED.
Together, we can end abortion and create a future where every child is cherished and every mother is supported.
International·By Bridget Sielicki
