Zimbabwe Court Protects Abortion Rights of Rape Victims and Minors

Zimbabwe’s High Court has declared unconstitutional a law barring abortion services for girls under 18 and women raped by their husbands. The ruling, made public this week, emphasized that forcing minors to carry pregnancies resulting from rape amounts to cruel and degrading treatment. Zimbabwe’s restrictive abortion laws only allow terminations in cases of life-threatening pregnancies or severe fetal defects. This decision follows Zimbabwe’s recent criminalization of sex with minors under 18, highlighting contradictions in existing laws. The ruling comes amid alarming statistics of unsafe abortions, with UNICEF reporting 77,000 cases annually. Cultural, religious, and economic barriers exacerbate teen pregnancies and abortion-related deaths. Although the ruling, initiated by a women’s rights group, awaits approval by the Constitutional Court, it marks a pivotal step toward protecting girls’ reproductive rights in a country grappling with widespread gender inequality and teenage pregnancies.

SOURCE: AP NEWS