In a far-reaching legal move, the Supreme Court of Mexico has determined that any federal regulations outlawing abortion are unconstitutional. This declaration takes place following the review of an injunction that a reproductive rights organization, GIRE, introduced. The injunction challenged the federal criminal code, specifically where it pertains to voluntary abortion.
The court’s ruling posits that making abortion a crime is tantamount to violence and gender discrimination. Further, the court indicated that penalizing medical professionals who provide abortions is not only discriminative but also results in limited access to the procedure. The court also ruled against laws offering criminal immunity for abortions resulting from rape as unconstitutional; the court argued that such laws implicitly uphold the criminality of women receiving abortions by designating certain situations as exceptions.
This decision by the Mexican Supreme Court builds upon a pivotal 2021ruling in which the court found an element of a state criminal code that barred abortion to be unconstitutional. This article, numbered as 196 of the Coahuila Penal Code, prescribed a prison sentence ranging from one to three years for women who opted for voluntary abortions and for medical practitioners who performed abortions with the woman’s consent. This statute was a comprehensive abortion ban, with no exceptions for medical emergencies or early pregnancy procedures.
With the direction of the judgment in the Coahuila case, the Supreme Court instructed judges across all of Mexico’s jurisdictions to consider, in future rulings, any bans treating either women or healthcare providers as criminals to be unconstitutional. It provided the legal foundation upon which GIRE took action. The Supreme Court’s decision mandates federal health institutions to provide abortion services without charge, integrated as part of their public healthcare system. However, other states continue to restrict abortions beyond 12 weeks of gestation. GIRE’s director, Isabel Fulda, expressed that the victory marks the most significant achievement in their ongoing struggle. Considering that an estimated 70% of Mexico’s populace accesses healthcare from a federal institution, the implications of this ruling on women throughout the nation will be substantial.