The Mexican Supreme Court of Justice ruled on Wednesday that it was unconstitutional to impose a prison sentence on women or persons with gestational capacity who voluntarily decide to terminate their pregnancies.
The ruling was made after the Supreme Court approved an injunction filed by the feminist collective Grupo de Información en Reproducción Elegida (GIRE), decriminalizing abortion nationwide.
“The Court analyzed the appeal and concluded that the section of the Federal Criminal Code that criminalizes abortion will no longer have any effect and, therefore, no woman, pregnant person, or health personnel, may be punished for having an abortion,” wrote the feminist collective in a press release.
Articles 330 to 334 of the Civil Penal Code- which punish by law women and medical workers involved in voluntary abortions, are now considered unconstitutional, effectively eliminating abortion as a crime from the federal penal code.
All federal health institutions must provide abortion services to all women and persons who can get pregnant who request it. This ruling is mandatory for all local and federal judges, who will have to abide by the Court’s decision.
