Roe vs. Wade: a global turning point?

(Original: french)

Written by: Violette Pottié

Translated by: Inji Achour

The Roe vs. Wade decision was overturned by the United States Supreme Court on Friday, June 24. Adopted in 1973, Roe vs Wade established until then the protection of the right to voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion), guaranteed by the right to respect for private life enshrined in the American Constitution. Starting from Friday, federal states can individually choose to restrict or suspend access to abortion. According to Reuters, 13 states have already undertaken actions to ban or severely restrict abortion on their territory^[1]Raymond, N (June 26, 2022). U.S. abortion ruling ignites legal battles over state. Reuters. ttps://www.reuters.com/world/us/abortion-clinic-challenges-louisiana-trigger-ban-after-us-supreme- … Continue reading. This number could in the long-term reach 26, totaling more than half of the American states^[2]USA/avortement: nombreuses manifestations attendues samedi [USA/Abortion : Many protests expected] (June 25, 2022). Courrier International. … Continue reading. The United States thus joins the list of four countries that have restricted or revoked the right to abortion in recent decades, alongside Poland, Nicaragua, and El Salvador. This judgment, in addition to impacting the lives of more than 40 million American women^[3]58% of U.S. women of reproductive age—40 million women—live in states hostile to abortion rights. (October 25, 2021). Guttmacher Institute. … Continue reading, could also have many repercussions internationally.

An alarming decision arousing many criticisms

This historic step backwards for women’s rights has provoked a large number of reactions on the international scene, arousing the indignation of many politicians, feminist groups, researchers or members of civil society.  The decision, for example, caused a stir in China, where the hashtag “Supreme Court revokes constitutional right to abortion” has been viewed more than 620 million times on the social network Weibo^[4]Kwan, R. (June 25, 2022) Abortion ruling will impact globally, health organizations warn as some activists emboldened. NBC News. … Continue reading. In France, the feminist group Nous Toutes (All of Us) posted on Twitter: “It’s a dark day for women’s rights^[5]@NousToutesOrg’s Tweet. (June 24, 2022). Twitter. https://twitter.com/NousToutesOrg/status/1540359889301737474 ”.

The consequences of such a decision are multiple, the most alarming being the prohibition on women having bodily autonomy. A UNFPA report estimates that nearly half of pregnancies worldwide are unintended, and that in 60% of cases women decide to have an abortion^[6]UNFPA statement on the global implications of new restrictions to access to abortion (June 24, 2022). United Nations Population Fund. https://www.unfpa.org/press/unfpa-statement-global- … Continue reading. However, prohibiting abortion forces women to resort to illegal terminations of pregnancy, at the risk of multiple complications. Each year, more than 25 million abortions performed in unsafe conditions take place around the world^[7]Droit à l’avortement : dans quels pays est-il interdit, restreint ou menacé ? [The right to abortion: in which countries is it prohibited, restricted or threatened?] (June 24, 2022). Le Monde. … Continue reading. Health organizations then mobilized to sound the alarm. A statement from FIGO, signed by more than a hundred gynecology and obstetrics organizations around the world, recalls that “abortion is recognized as a health right to be ensured by governments. Access to safe abortion is also a human right^[8]As the US Supreme Court overturns Roe v Wade, global health care organisations call on all governments to defend access to safe and quality abortion care. (June 24, 2022). International Federation of … Continue reading.”

When America sneezes, the world catches a cold^[9]When America sneezes, the world catches cold…? This expression expresses that what happens in the United States tends to impact the rest of the world. …?

Many representatives of the political landscape have spoken on this subject. While some, such as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau^[10]“The news coming out of the United States is horrifying… No government, politician or man should tell a woman what she has the right or not to do with her body” or President Emmanuel Macron^[11]« L’avortement est un droit fondamental pour toutes les femmes. Il faut le protéger. J’exprime ma solidarité avec les femmes dont les libertés sont aujourd’hui remises en cause par la … Continue reading, condemned the Supreme Court ruling, conservative state leaders welcomed this decision. The Brazilian President’s son, Flávio Bolsonaro posted a tweet congratulating the Supreme Court and the Americans^[12]“Congratulations to the Americans! Around here, we continue to defend those who do not even have a voice in the matter and to think that an abortionist is a candidate for the presidency…. … Continue reading, while the country is currently at the heart of a debate on abortion. Last week, an 11-year-old child victim of rape had an abortion, despite the inducement to give it up by the judge in charge of the case. The treatment of this event – ​​described as “inadmissible^[13]Alavres, D. Savarese, M. (June,23 2022) Brazil: Raped girl, 11, gets abortion after initial refusal. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/brazil-raped-girl-1 … Continue reading ” by the president – ​​by the country’s legislative authorities echoes the positions of Jair Bolsonaro and his Christian evangelist electorate on abortion. In Brazil, abortion is limited to specific situations, and the decision of the United States could reinforce this way of thinking, in a country where women seeking an abortion are often forced to turn to the black market to buy misoprostol drugs^[14]Drugs used for voluntary termination of pregnancy. Nolen, S. (June 25, 2022) When Brazil Banned Abortion Pills, Women Turned to Drug Traffickers. The Washington Post. … Continue reading. On the other hand, in Spain, the far-right Vox party said it hoped Roe vs Wade would “encourage Europeans to fight for the rights of the innocent^[15]Ferreira Marquez, C. (June 27, 2022). America’s Abortion Ruling Should Worry Us All. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/americas-abortion-rulingshould-worry-us- … Continue reading.”

A United Nations report also expresses concern about the potential repercussions of such a decision on developing countries: “Almost all unsafe abortions currently take place in developing countries and UNFPA fears that these will increase around of the world if access to abortion is further restricted^[16]Seeing the Unseen – The case for action in the neglected crisis of unintended pregnancy. (2022). United Nations Population Fund. https://www.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub- … Continue reading”. In many developing countries, abortion rights are indeed a hard-fought fight by activists and revoking Roe vs Wade could go against those efforts. In Malawi, for example, efforts to pass a law on access to safe abortion could be swept away by recent events. Indeed, the Supreme Court’s decision risks further encouraging further the anti-abortion groups who oppose the adoption of this law every day^[17]Saldinger, A. (June 24, 2022). Bracing for global impact as Roe v. Wade abortion decision overturned. https://www.devex.com/news/bracing-for-global-impact-as-roe-v-wade-abortion-decision-overturned- … Continue reading. Additionally, abortion is a crucial issue in sub-Saharan Africa, rated by the Guttmacher Institute as the region in the world with the highest rate of unsafe abortion; 15,000 deaths among women each year could be avoided by improving access to abortion on the continent^[18]Abortion in Sub-Saharan Africa. (December 2022). Guttmacher Institute. https://www.guttmacher.org/fact-sheet/abortion-subsaharan-africa .

There is also the question of countries where the legalization of abortion is a recent and contested event. In Argentina, the law legalizing abortion up to 14 weeks of gestation was established in January 2021, after long years of struggle led by feminist groups, and events in the United States have not failed to relaunch the debate. Conservative lawmaker A. Granata was quick to tweet about it: “Justice is once again done in the world. We will also accomplish this in Argentina^[19]Kwan, R. (June, 25 2022) Abortion ruling will impact globally, health organizations warn as some activists emboldened. Op. cit. ”. This situation is common to many countries in Latin and South America, where the “green tide^[20]Nickname given to activist groups fighting for abortion in Latin and South American countries, due to the color worn by feminists.” of recent years has allowed a recent opening to abortion, as in Colombia or Mexico.

The dismissal of the Supreme Court therefore seems to have repercussions in amplifying the voices of anti-abortion groups already present around the world. Many experts have expressed their fears, like M. Soumokil, director of Ipas^[21]International organization fighting for access to abortion in the world in Indonesia: “The restriction of access to abortion in the United States will send signals to the governments of the rest of the world, in Indonesia and in other countries, indicating that the right to abortion is not part of human rights^[22]Saldinger, A. (June, 24 2022). Bracing for global impact as Roe v. Wade abortion decision overturned. Op. cit.”. Nevertheless, the judgment of Roe vs. Wade is still too premature to conclude that an anti-abortion trend is generalized in a world where the social realities are specific to each country.

Different visions of abortion around the world

A certain distance must be taken in the analysis of the impact of Roe vs Wade on the international scene. The influence of the United States is not the same everywhere, and it is impossible to conclude that the values ​​carried by the justices of the Supreme Court have a universal scope. In India’s case, abortion was legalized two years before the United States and has remained largely unchallenged politically ever since. Even if, as in the United States, religion is very present in the country, the question of abortion is a private matter and not a matter of public religious debate^[23]Venugopal, V. (June, 26 2022) Roe vs Wade ruling: Will embolden regressive ideas in India, say activists. The Economic Times. … Continue reading. On the other hand, in other Asian nations, such as China or Thailand, abortion is also not questioned. Mr. Mathews, a doctor at the Institute of Policy Studies Social Lab, explains that abortion was popularized in Asia in very different circumstances from those in the United States, when governments needed to control the population to modernize nations^[24]Kimberly, L. (June 27,2022) Explainer: US court’s abortion ruling sparked outrage beyond America. What does it mean for this part of the world? Today. … Continue reading. Thus, for many of its researchers, making a shortcut between the situation in the United States and a potential impact in Asia would be a mistake^[25]“The mistake is to believe that the United States defines morality for the rest of humanity. » Professor Walter Woon, professor of law at the National University of Singapore.

The United States, against the current of the global movement around abortion

Historically, the United States has always wanted to place itself as a leader of fundamental rights, as during the Roe vs. Wade statute which had served as an example for many countries, prompting France to adopt the Veil law two years later, in 1975. However, the revocation of Roe vs. Wade that we are witnessing today is in complete contradiction with the values ​​of human rights advocated by the United States. The world’s leading power is now breaking away from the progressive trend on the international scene. More than 50 countries whose abortion laws were previously restrictive have relaxed their laws in the past 25 years, recalls Mr. Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights^[26]Droit à l’avortement: les États-Unis, une « exception » dans les rangs des pays développés [Right to abortion: the United States, an “exception” in the ranks of developed countries]. … Continue reading. The decision of the Supreme Court then reveals less of a hostility of the population towards abortion and more of a seizure of power by the Republican camp over American institutions. A study conducted in February shows that 64% of Americans believe that the decision to have an abortion should not rest in the hands of the law^[27]Abortion Public Opinion Survey 2022 Key Findings. (February, 24 2022). PerryUndem. https://perryundem.com/wp- … Continue reading. Joe Biden himself said the revocation of Roe vs. Wade made the United States “an exception among the developed countries of the world^[28]Remarks by President Biden on the Supreme Court Decision to Overturn Roe v. Wade (June, 24 2022). The White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches- … Continue reading.”

Within the European Union, despite the situation in Poland where abortion is virtually prohibited, abortion is strongly defended, with 26 out of its 28 member states having legalized abortion. In Germany, a law restricting information about abortions dating back to the Nazi era was abolished on June 25^[29]Droit à l’avortement : l’Allemagne supprime une loi de l’ère nazie sur l’IVG [Abortion rights: Germany scraps Nazi-era abortion law] (June, 25 2022) France info and AFP. … Continue reading. In the Netherlands, the Senate voted last week to abolish the reflection period for resorting to abortion^[30]Simonart, D. Lota, L. De Taillach, M. (June, 27 2022) Droit à l’avortement : quelle législation en Pologne, en Espagne et aux Pays-Bas [ Abortion Rights : what is the legislation in Poland, … Continue reading. In France, the decision of the Supreme Court also caused a stir, to the point that certain political parties proposed to include the right to abortion in the Constitution. As for Chile, a similar proposal is being studied, and the South American country could soon become the first nation in the world to enshrine the right to abortion in the Constitution^[31]The small club of countries that the US joins after overturning the Roe v Wade ruling. (June, 25 2022). Firstpost. … Continue reading.

The dice are therefore not yet cast for the situation of abortion in the world. The Roe vs. Wade ruling alarms feminist and health collectives given the American influence that risks giving more voice to anti-abortion groups around the globe. Nevertheless, each country has its own social values, and the situation in the United States is not applicable everywhere. Moreover, despite the many concerns, the global progressive trend of legalizing abortion in recent years should continue to continue, even if the US Supreme Court has decided to turn its back on it.

To cite this production : Violette Pottié, “Roe vs Wade : un tournant décisif au niveau mondial ?”, 2.07.2022, Gender in Geopolitics Institute Géopolitique

The statements in this article are the sole responsibility of the author.