Girls under 18 can legally have abortions without parental consent, the Pretoria High Court ruled on Friday.
The court dismissed the Christian Lawyers’ Association’s (CLA) challenge to the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act. This is the second time the CLA has lost an court challenge to the Act.
Judge Phineas Mojapelo ruled that the Constitution protects a woman’s right to determine the fate of her own pregnancy, and said this applies to everyone, including girls under 18.
Mojapelo said, however, that the Act demands that if a pregnant minor wants an abortion, a doctor or registered midwife ”is enjoined in peremptory language” to advise the girl to consult her parents before the pregnancy is terminated.
Women’s Legal Centre attorney Nikki Taylor welcomed the ruling, saying that minors’ rights to reproductive choice have to be ”protected and promoted” to reverse the trend of teenage pregnancy.
”Adolescent pregnancies are dangerous for both mother and child. Every year at least 60 000 adolescent women die from health problems related to pregnancy and child birth.”
Taylor also said teenage pregnancies are ”disempowering”, limiting girls’ education and income-earning capacity and impairing their ability to make well-informed choices about life.
In addition, most sexual contact between teenagers is unprotected.
The CLA had argued that the Act infringes on the constitutional right of every child to family or parental care and to be protected from maltreatment, neglect or degradation.
The association said a decision to abort a pregnancy will have long-term emotional, emotional and physical, or emotional, physical and spiritual effects, from which a girl should be protected through parental advice.
The Women’s Legal Centre, on behalf of the Reproductive Rights Alliance, intervened as a ”friend of the court” and argued that there might be compelling reasons why requiring parental consent could endanger teenagers.
Also, there might be compelling reasons why teenagers would rather not consult their parents, forcing them to do so would ”force” teenagers to seek illegal, and dangerous, termination procedures. — Sapa