/ 10 April 2007

Portugal’s president endorses new abortion law

Portugal’s president on Tuesday ratified a new law permitting abortion up until the 10th week of pregnancy, but recommended a raft of measures that would discourage the procedure in the mostly Roman Catholic country.

Parliament voted overwhelmingly last month to legalise abortion, scrapping previous tight restrictions and bringing Portugal in line with most of its European neighbours. The legislation came after a referendum in February that favoured the change.

Though he gave his formal consent to the new law, President Anibal Cavaco Silva described abortion as ”a social evil to be avoided”.

He said in a statement that women seeking the procedure should be shown an ultrasound of the fetus, and doctors who oppose abortion should be allowed to counsel them.

Women also should be informed about the possibility of their child being adopted and be told about the possible psychological and physical consequences of an abortion, he said.

The governing centre-left Socialist Party has long fought for the legalisation of abortion. Prime Minister Jose Socrates, whose party took power in a landslide victory two years ago after promising broad reforms and nationwide modernisation, made the new abortion law a priority. He described the old abortion law as ”backward” and ”a national disgrace”.

The Catholic Church, however, campaigned strongly against the change.

Cavaco Silva urged the government to evaluate the law’s effects to ensure there is no sharp rise in the number of abortions. He said his recommendations seek to strike ”a reasonable balance between the various points of view”.

The Socialist Party’s parliamentary leader, Alberto Martins, said there are no plans to change the law, but the president’s recommendations will be examined.

Under the Constitution, laws passed by Parliament must be rubber-stamped by the head of state. The abortion law will come into force when it is published in official government records, probably next month.

The old law was among the most restrictive in Europe, allowing the procedure in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy only if a mother’s health was at risk. In cases of rape, it was permitted until the 16th week. Only if abortion was the only way to save a pregnant woman’s life was there a time restriction.

The government hopes the new law will put an end to dangerous backstreet abortions. Women’s rights groups say about 10 000 women in Portugal are hospitalised every year with complications arising from botched, illegal abortions.

The new law will set no restrictions on women seeking to end their pregnancies up to the 10th week, though it does require a mandatory three-day reflection period before an abortion is performed.

He said authorities must ensure comprehensive and regular inspections of private clinics licensed to perform abortions and recommended a prohibition on advertising that could be seen as encouraging abortion. Furthermore, the government should improve sex education and family planning policies.

Church officials had no immediate reaction to the president’s ratification. — Sapa-AP