SCOTUS decision ending abortion rights nationwide is a ‘major blow’ to human rights, UN says
The US Supreme Court ruling that overturned the 1973 Roe v Wade decision will not prevent women from seeking abortions, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Friday following the court’s decision. higher. Instead, you may put their lives at risk.
“Restricting access to abortion doesn’t stop people from seeking an abortion, it only makes it more deadly”, spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters. “Sexual and reproductive health and rights are the foundation of a life of choice, empowerment and equality for the world’s women and girls.”, he added.
UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet agreed, calling the court’s decision “a major setback» y «a heavy blow to women’s human rights and gender equality.”
The Supreme Court’s decision to reverse the 50-year-old ruling protecting women’s right to abortion across the country leaves the decision up to the states. While some states prepared for the impending repeal by passing laws protecting abortion rights, others did the opposite, adopting “trigger laws” intended to formalize a ban or other restrictions on the procedure should Roe be reversed.
The UN Population Fund states that 45% of all abortions in the world are unsafe. The agency also says that almost half of all pregnancies worldwide are unplanned, and more than 60% of them end in abortion.