REPROHEALTHLAW Updates – 2023-24

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW: To receive these updates by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS

[Argentina, preventable maternal death,”obstetric violence”] Britez Arce et. al. v. Argentina. (Inter-American Court of Human Rights, November 16, 2022). Decision in English. Decision in Spanish. Press Release Jan 18, 2023. Comment by CRR. [Earlier: Merits report by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (Report 236/19, Case 13.002. Report in English-download.)

[Bolivia, rape of a minor, revictimization] Losado v Bolivia (Inter-American Court of Human Rights, November 18, 2022) English press release Jan 19, 2023 Summary in Spanish. Decision in Spanish. The Court held Bolivia responsible for gender and child discrimination, and revictimization of an adolescent victim of sexual violence during the judicial process.

[Colombia, abortion decriminalized] Sentencia C-055-22.  Expediente D-13.956. Demanda de inconstitucionalidad contra el artículo 122 de la Ley 599 del 2000. (Constitutional Court of Colombia, February 21, 2022). Decision in Spanish (414 pages).  Backup decision in Spanish.  Unofficial English translation. 27-page Spanish press release.  English summary of Press Release.  1-page Spanish press release. [Abortion is decriminalized within 24 weeks of gestation, and thereafter permitted on specified grounds.] 

[El Salvador, abortion, anencephaly] Beatriz v. El Salvador, Case 13-378, Report No. 09/20, Inter-Am. C.H.R. (2020) (Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, January 5, 2022): Report in Spanish. Case Summary in Spanish.  Press release in English. [Woman with lupus and kidney failure denied abortion for fetus with anencephaly.] Inter-American Court of Human Rights held hearings in March 2023.

France made abortion a fundamental constitutional right. March 4, 2024. Parliamentarians voted to revise the country’s 1958 constitution to enshrine women’s “guaranteed freedom” to abort. News report in English.

[Mexico, Abortion decriminalized], Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación [Supreme Court], 2023..Review of Constitutional Protection. Amparo en revisión 267/2023. Sept. 6, 2023. Speaker: Justice Ana Margarita Ríos Farjat. Decided September 6, 2023. Official Press release in Spanish.   [Abortion is decriminalized throughout Mexico.]

[Northern Ireland, UN CEDAW] Report of the Inquiry concerning the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland under article 8 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, (2018) U.N. Doc. CEDAW/C/OP.8/GBR/1  Original CEDAW 2018 report.  Comments by Clare Pierson. [abortion, a crime in Northern Ireland following sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against Persons Act 1861, was legalized in 2020.]
—Follow-up report submitted by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 16 January 2023, published March 14, 2023 as CEDAW/C/OP.*/GBR/3/Add.1.  Followup report in different formats, English, French and Spanish.  [Among other reforms, Northern Ireland established a Gender Equality Strategy Expert Advisory Panel whose Report of December 2020 is online here]. 

[Peru, UN Committee on the Rights of the Child] Camila v. Peru, Communication No. 136/2021.U.N. Doc CRC/C/93/D/136/2021 (June 13, 2023) Decision online in Spanish, Arabic and Russian.  Decision in English (May 25, 2023, *unofficial draft). Case note by Godfrey Kangaude.  [Child raped by her father. Ruling: Peru violated child rape victim’s rights by failing to guarantee access to abortion and criminally prosecuting her for self-abortion.]

[Peru, child marriage] Ley N.º 31945 to prohibit and eliminate any possibility of marriage with minors under the age of 18 was promulgated on 25 November 2023. Prior to the new legislation, Article 42 of Peru’s Civil Code permitted adolescents to marry from the age of 14 under certain conditions, with consent from at least one parent, despite the minimum legal age of marriage being 18 years for girls and boys. Context in English.

[Poland, ECtHR ruled against fetal abnormality abortion ban] M.L. v. POLAND (Application no. 40119/21) (European Court of Human Rights, December 14, 2023) [Woman forced to travel for abortion of malformed fetus. Court found violation of ECHR Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the ECHR, following a 2020 Constitutional Court ban on legal abortion in case of foetal abnormalities. Press release. Decision of 14 Dec 2023.

[Poland, fetal abnormality risk, inadmissible] A.M. and others v. Poland (application no. 4188/21, 4957/21, 5014/21,5523/21, 5876/21, 6114/21, 6217/21, 8857/21) (European Court of Human Rights, May 16, 2023) ruled these 8 cases inadmissible because each applicant could not claim to be a victim of a violation of the ECHR owing to risk of a future violation. Press Release. Decision of 16 May 2023.

[Spain, access to abortion information] Tribunal Supremo de España, Sala Tercera, de lo Contencioso-administrativo, Sección 4ª, S 1231/2022, 3 Oct. 2022 (Rec. 6147/2021)  Decision in Spanish.  Spanish backup copy.  Decision in English.  English backup copy. [The Government cannot block public access to a website containing information or opinions without judicial authorization.  This includes the site of Women on Web, which discusses access to abortion.

[Turkey, abortion for rape victim], [Case of] R.G. [GK], B. No: 2017/31619, 23/7/2020,.July 23, 2020. (Grand Chamber of the Turkish Constitutional Court)   27-page decision in Turkish. Backup copy. Official press release in English. Backup copy.  Comment  in English on IACL/AIDC Blog. Article in English from a Turkish Journal of Constitutional Law  [procrastination after rape victim applied for abortion violated the right to protect one’s corporeal and spiritual existence (provided under Article 17 of Turkish Constitution.

[UK – challenge to fetal abnormality ground for abortion] R (on the Application of Crowter and Ors) v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care EWCA Civ 1559 Case No: CA-2021-000314 (UK Court of Appeal (Civil Division) London, 25 Nov., 2022, Judgment summary. Decision online.  [UK legislation allowing abortion for substantial risk of a born child’s serious handicap (such as Down syndrome) is not incompatible with disabled persons’ human rights to respect for their private and family life and to nondiscrimination.] This was an appeal of [2021] EWHC 2536 (Admin) Case No. CO/2066/2020 (High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, London) Sept 23, 2021.  Judgment and summary.    [fetus has no established rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), so UK abortion law allowing legal abortions in cases of severe fetal abnormalities is compatible with ECHR.]

[Venezuela, obstetric violence] Inter-American Court of Human Rights – Case of Rodríguez Pacheco et al. v. Venezuela. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of September 1, 2023. Series C No. 504. Press release in English. Official Summary in Spanish. 82-page judgment in Spanish. Download partial dissent by Judge Sierra Porto. Download: partial dissent by Judge Pérez Goldberg. The Court ruled that Venezuela is responsible for deficiencies in Judicial Proceedings on a Complaint of acts of obstetric violence and medical malpractice that took place in a private hospital.

SCHOLARSHIP

[comparative abortion law] Rebecca J. Cook and Bernard M. Dickens, “Abortion,” in Jan M. Smits, Jaakko Husa, Catherine Valcke and Madalena Narciso, eds., Elgar Encyclopedia of Comparative Law, 3rd ed., (Cheltenham, UK: Elgar Publishing, 2023), 3-11. Abstract online here. Full text and PDF online

[abortion law, Colombia] “The new Colombian law on abortion,” by Isabel C Jaramillo Sierra, International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 160.1 (January 2023): 345-350.  Abstract and Article. 

[abortion law and policy] “Self managed abortion: aligning law and policy with medical evidence,” by Patty Skuster, Heidi Moseson and Jamila Perritt, in International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 160.2 (February 2023): 720-725. Abstract and Article.  

[abortion law and policy, guideline] “The WHO Abortion Care Guideline: Law and Policy–Past, Present and Future,” by Joanna N. Erdman, in International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 162.3 (Sept 2023): 1119–1124. Abstract and Article.  WHO Abortion Care guideline, 2022.

[adolescents, Africa] “Integrating child rights standards in contraceptive and abortion care for minors in Africa,” by Godfrey Dalitso Kangaude, Catriona Macleod, Ernestina Coast and Tamara Fetters, International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics 159.3 (December 2022): 998-1004.   Abstract and Article.

[Africa, Zimbabwe, rewrite abortion decision, gender equality] Charles Ngwena and Rebecca J. Cook, “Restoring Mai Mapingure’s Equal Citizenship,” In: Rebecca J. Cook, ed., Frontiers of Gender Equality: Transnational Legal Perspectives (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023). Abstract online.  Book available here. Introduction to the book (by Rebecca Cook).

[gender equality, health, CEDAW GR 24] “Gender Equality in Health Care: Reenvisioning CEDAW General Recommendation 24,” by Joanna N. Erdman and Mariana Prandini Assis, in Frontiers of Gender Equality: Transnational Legal Perspectives, ed. Rebecca J. Cook (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023). Abstract online in English. Portuguese translation of this chapter. Book available here. Introduction to the book (by Rebecca Cook).

[gender equality] Rebecca J. Cook, “Many Paths to Gender Equality,” Introduction to: Frontiers of Gender Equality: Transnational Legal Perspectives (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023). Introduction online.

[infertility] “”Human Rights Approaches to Reducing Infertility,” by Payal K. Shah and Jaime M. Gher, in International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics.162.1 (July 2023): 368–374.  Abstract and Article. 

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available  on Repro Rights Prof Blog. View or subscribe.

JOBS
Links to employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here.

______________
Contributed by: the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca.   See Program website for our Publications,  Research resources, and Reprohealthlaw Commentaries Series.  TO JOIN THE REPROHEALTHLAW BLOG: enter your email address in the upper right corner of our blog, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

REPROHEALTHLAW Updates – Autumn 2022

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW: To receive these updates by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS

COLOMBIA: Corte Constitucional [Constitutional Court] February 21, 2022, Sentencia C-055-22.  27-page Spanish communicado.  27-page unofficial English translation.  Nota de Prensa (Spanish).   Download unofficial English translation.  (Abortion is decriminalized within 24 weeks of gestation.]

INTER-AMERICAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS – EL SALVADOR Manuela et al. v. El Salvador,  Inter-Am. Ct. H.R. (ser. C) No 441. (November 2, 2021).  Decision in English.. Backup copy. Decision in Spanish.  Backup copy in Spanish..Comment by Centre for Reproductive Rights.  [El Salvador was held accountable for the arbitrary detention, torture, and conviction of a woman after obstetric emergency and loss of pregnancy in 2008. Convicted of “aggravated homicide.” Two years later, Manuela died from cancer, in prison.]

KENYA: PAK & Salim Mohammed v. Attorney General & 3 Others (Constitutional Petition E009 of 2020) [2022] KEHC 262 (KLR) (24 March 2022) (High Court of Kenya at Malindi)  Decision online.   Backup copy.    Press release by CRR. [Abortion care is a fundamental constitutional right. Arrests of patients and clinicians are illegal. Parliament is directed to align law and policy with the Constitution.]

MEXICO: AI 148/2017 Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación 2021,  Acción de inconstitucionalidad AI 148/2017, Sept 7, 2021  Decision in Spanish.   News report in English.   Official press release in Spanish.  Official press release in English.  [Criminalizing abortion is unconstitutional; state interests in protecting fetus cannot outweigh the reproductive rights of women.]

MEXICO AI 106/2018: Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación [Supreme Court] 2021, Acción de inconstitucionalidad AI 106/2018 and 107/2018), Sept. 7, 2021.  Decision in Spanish.  Official press release in English.  [States may not establish a right to life from the moment of conception in their local constitutions]

MEXICO AI 54/2018: Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación 2021, Acción de inconstitucionalidad AI 54/2018, Sept 21, 2021.   Decision in Spanish.  Decision backup.    Official press release in English.  [This ruling struck down part of the General Law regulating health services nationwide, because it established an expansive right to conscientious objection by medical personnel, without establishing the limits necessary to ensure patients’ rights to healthcare.]

NEW ZEALAND: High Court decision in NZ Health Professionals’ Alliance v Attorney-General, Sept. 24, 2021, upholds sections of the Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Act 1977 (‘CSAA’), amended in the Abortion Legislation Act 2020, regarding conscientious objectors’ duty to refer and (within reason) accommodation of objecting employees. News report.  Decision online. Commentary on decision. 

NORTHERN IRELAND Judicial review by Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission: In re NIHRC (Abortion), “In the matter of an application by The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission for Judicial Review – In the matter of the failure by the Secretary of State, Executive Committee and Minister of Health to provide women with access to Abortion and Post Abortion Care in All Public Health Facilities in Northern Ireland [2021] NIQB 91 Delivered 14 October 2021.    Decision online.  Backup copy.    Official Summary.  News story.   [Secretary of State failed to comply with 2019 Act  to “expeditiously” provide women in Northern Ireland with access to high quality abortion and post abortion services].

POLAND: Applications have been filed before the European Court of Human Rights by more than 1,000 Polish women who were denied abortions or who postponed their reproductive decisions out of fear. [because of the Constitutional Tribunal’s October 2020 ruling that disallowed abortion in cases of severe and irreversible fetal defects. Result: almost total ban on abortion.] Human Rights Watch report.

POLAND: “Izabel”, 22-weeks pregnant, died of septic shock in Sept 2021 while doctors waited for her doomed fetus to die within her.  Washington Post Nov 2021 article. Mass protests focused on the Oct 2020 abortion ban ruling, but, so far, only hospital and staff have been held accountable. Notes from Poland, Sept. 2022.

UNITED STATES: Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, No. 19-1392, 597 U.S. _ (2022) (Supreme Court of the United States), held that the Constitution of the United States does not confer a right to abortion. Case summary by CRR. Amicus brief by Martha Davis et al. IJGO article and other amicus briefs.

NEW INTERNATIONAL ABORTION CARE GUIDELINE

[WHO] Abortion Care Guideline (Geneva: World Health Organization, 2022). Chapter 2 discusses Law and Policy.
Download the Guideline, or see Overview and Supplementary resources.

SCHOLARSHIP

[abortion law, France] [Why and how to constitutionalize abortion law]: ‘Pourquoi et comment constitutionaliser le droit à l’avortement,” par Stéphanie Hennette-Vauchez, Diane Roman et Serge Slama, La Revue des Droits de l’Homme, Actualités Droits-Libertés | 2022 Juillet 2022. Full text in French.

[abortion law, Latin America] “Pushing Past the Tipping Point: Can the Inter-American System Accommodate Abortion Rights?” by Patricia Palacios Zuloaga, Human Rights Law Review 21.4 (Dec 2021): 899–934. Abstract and Article.

“Abortion Lawfare in Latin America: Some Reading Keys for a Changing Scenario, ” special issue eds. Catarina Barbieri, Camila Gianella, Maria Defago, and Marta Machado (2021) Rev. Direito GV vol. 17 no 3, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Epub Dec 15, 2021. Overview and three articles in English.

[abortion law, Mexico] “The Decriminalization of Abortion: A Landmark Decision by the Mexican Supreme Court,” by Joy Monserrat Ochoa Martínez,and Roberto Niembro Ortega, I-CONnect Blog, Posted: 12 Oct 2021. Expert comment.

[abortion law, Poland] “The Scales of the European Court of Human Rights: Abortion Restriction in Poland, the European Consensus, and the State’s Margin of Appreciation,” by Julia Kapelańska-Pręgowska, Health and Human Rights Journal 23.2 (Dec 2021): 213-224. Abstract and article.

[abortion law, USA] “The state of abortion rights in the US,” by Martha F. Davis. International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 159.1 (Oct 2022): 324-329 Abstract online. Article: free access .

[abortion law, USA] Abortion and the Law in America: Roe v. Wade to the Present, by Mary Ziegler. (Cambridge University Press, 2020). Publisher’s abstract.

“Conscientious Objection and the Duty to Refer,” by Bernard M. Dickens, International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 2021; 155: 556-560. PDF at Wiley Online.  Submitted Text at SSRN.

[conscientious objection: Argentina] “Regulating Conscientious Objection to Legal Abortion in Argentina: Taking into Consideration Its Uses and Consequences,” by Agustina Ramón Michel, Stephanie Kung, Alyse López-Salm, and Sonia Ariza Navarrete, Health and Human Rights Journal 22.2 (Dec 2020): 271 – 384. Abstract and article.

[Conscientious objection: South Africa, nurses] “Power dynamics in the provision of legal abortion : a feminist perspective on nurses and conscientious objection in South Africa” by Satang Nabaneh, Doctoral Thesis (LLD)–University of Pretoria, 2020, now online: Doctoral thesis – 290 pages.

Conscientious Objection / The Right to Conscience, an annotated bibliography, updated Feb. 15, 2021 Conscience Bibiography.

[Conscientious objection] Global Map of Norms regarding Conscientious Objection, a searchable interactive map for comparative law, by Agustina Ramón Michel (coordinator) and Dana Repka (CEDES / REDAAS) with the support of Ipas and the ELA team. Updated December 15, 2022: Global Map of Norms re Conscientious Objection.

“Contested Rights: Abortion and Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in the United Nations,” by Erin Aylward, Ph.D. thesis, University of Toronto, Canada, Nov. 2020. Abortion/SOGI thesis.

[migrants] “International migrants’ right to sexual and reproductive health care,” by Y. Y. Brandon Chen, International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 2022;157: 210–215  PDF at Wiley online.  Submitted Text at SSRN. 

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available  on Repro Rights Prof Blog. View or subscribe.

JOBS
Links to employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here.
______________
Compiled by: the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca.   See Program website for our Publications,  Research resources, and Reprohealthlaw Commentaries Series.  TO JOIN THE REPROHEALTHLAW BLOG: enter your email address in the upper right corner of our blog, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

REPROHEALTHLAW Updates – Autumn 2020

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW: To receive these updates by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS
Amnesty International’s new institutional policy on abortion, released Sept 28, 2020, has been endorsed by the International Federation of Gynecologists and Obstetricians (FIGO). Amnesty Abortion Policy.
Press release. Explanatory note. Key messages. FAQ.

[Poland] Constitutional Tribunal ruled that abortion on grounds of congenital fetal defects is unconstitutional. Sygn. akt K 1/20, October 22, 2020. Decision in Polish. News report in English.

[The Philippines] PINSAN (network of NGOs and individuals) released proposed text of a “decriminalization bill” and an international petition to decriminalize abortion in the Philippines, September 28, 2020.
Proposed legislation. International petition. Bill launch on Facebook with Q & A.

SCHOLARSHIP
Access to Abortion: An Annotated Bibliography of Reports and Scholarship. (Toronto: International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, 2020) 44 pages. Abortion access bibliography.

[abortion] “Why self-managed abortion is so much more than a provisional solution for times of pandemic,” by Mariana Prandini Assis & Sara Larrea, Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters, 28:1 (2020) Article online.

[Africa] “Adolescent sexual and reproductive health and universal health coverage: a comparative policy and legal analysis of Ethiopia, Malawi and Zambia,” by Godfrey Kangaude, Ernestina Coast & Tamara Fetters (2020) Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters, 28:2, 1-15. Abstract and article. Policy briefs: Ethiopia brief, Malawi brief. Zambia brief.

[Argentina] “A Case for Legal Abortion: The Human Cost of Barriers to Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Argentina,” (Human Rights Watch, 2020) 77-page report in English. Overview in English. Informe en Espanol.

[Australia] “Advancing Reproductive Rights through Legal Reform: The Example of Abortion Clinic Safe Access Zones,” by Ronli Sifris, Tania Penovic and Caroline Henckels, University of New South Wales Law Journal 43.3 (2020): 1078-1097. Abstract and Article.

[Belgium, Ireland] “Abortion law reform in Europe: The 2018 Belgian and Irish Acts on termination of pregnancy,” by Fien De Meyer – Medical Law International 20.1 (2020): 3-30. Abstract and article.

[India-abortion law] “The MTP 2020 Amendment Bill: anti-rights subjectivity,” by Alka Barua, Anubha Rastogi, V. Deepa, Dipika Jain, Manisha Gupte, and Rupsa Mallik. Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters 28.1 (2020). Commentary online.

[India] “Reimagining Reproductive Rights Jurisprudence in India: Reflections on the Recent Decisions on Privacy and Gender Equality from the Supreme Court of India,” by Dipika Jain and Payal K. Shah, Columbia Journal of Gender and Law 39.2 (2020): 1-53. Abstract and PDF access.

[Mexico] “Bioethics training in reproductive health in Mexico,” by Gustavo Ortiz-Millán and Frances Kissling, International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 151.2 (November, 2020): 308-313  PDF free access for 12 months.  Submitted Text. 

[Nigeria] “The Conflict in Northeast Nigeria’s Impact on the Sexual and Reproductive Rights of Women and Girls.” by Onyema Afulukwe and Chinonye Obianwu (Nairobi: Center for Reproductive Rights and Legal Defence and Assistance Project, 2020) 26 page report.

[Philippines] “Reasons Why We Need to Decriminalize Abortion” by Clara Rita A. Padilla (of EnGendeRights and PINSAN).
Seven reasons op-ed, 22 reasons – full report.

[Surrogacy] “Paid surrogacy abroad does not violate public policy: UK Supreme Court,” by Bernard M. Dickens, International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 150.1 (July 2020): 129-133 PDF- Free Access till July 2021.  Submitted Text.

“Transsexuality:  Legal and Ethical challenges,” by Bernard M. Dickens.  International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 151.1 (October, 2020): 163-167 PDF free access for 12 months.   Submitted Text.

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available  on Repro Rights Prof Blog. View or subscribe.

JOBS
Links to employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here.
______________
Compiled by: the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca.   See Program website for our Publications,  Information resources, and Reprohealthlaw Commentaries Series.  TO JOIN THE REPROHEALTHLAW BLOG: enter your email address in the upper right corner of our blog, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

REPROHEALTHLAW Updates – February 2019

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW: To receive these updates monthly by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS:

[abortion] Ireland – The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act was signed into law, effective January 1, 2019.  Medical Council also deleted four of the five paragraphs dealing with abortion from its guide on professional conduct and ethics because they conflicted with the Act.  Newspaper article.

[abortion -Northern Ireland] UK Supreme Court had ruled in June ([2018] UKSC 27 (7 June 2018)  On appeal from: [2017] NICA 42)  that violation of European Convention on Human Rights could not be decided without at least one complainant.  On January 30, 2019,  Sara Ewart, who had once travelled for abortion of a fatally impaired fetus, launched a case that could find Northern Ireland’s abortion law in breach of the UK’s human rights commitments. She is supported by Amnesty International.  News article.  Amnesty International press release.

[conscience – institutional] Chile, Constitutional Court upheld an unconstitutionality claim against the government’s new Regulations about the scope of “institutional” conscientious objection for private facilities and clinics.  STC Rol N° 5572-18-CDS / 5650-18-CDS (acumuladas). January 18, 2019.   Spanish decision  English news report.

[conscience]   Norway: Supreme Court upholds rights of doctor who refused to insert IUD.  Two cases: I. Sauherad municipality (Counsel Frode Lauareid) v. A, Norges Kristelige Legeforening (intervener) (Counsel Håkon H. Bleken), II. A, Norges Kristelige Legeforening (intervener) (Counsel Håkon H. Bleken) v. Sauherad municipality (Counsel Frode Lauareid, HR-2018-1958-A (case no. 2018/199), 11 October 2018 (Supreme Court of Norway) Judgment online in English – official translation.      Newspaper article.

[stigma] US:  Vending Machines Offer Emergency Contraception Without the Stigma introduced in 2012, now at several campuses, including Stanford University.   News report.

SCHOLARSHIP:

[abortion access]  Crossing Troubled Waters: Abortion in Ireland, Northern Ireland, and Prince Edward Island, ed. Colleen MacQuarrie, Fiona Bloomer, Claire Pierson and Shannon Stettner (Charlottetown, PEI, Canada: Island Studies Press, 2018). 288 pages.      Table of Contents.  Publisher’s web page.

[abortion law]   “Criminal law and the risk of harm: a commentary on the impact of criminal laws on sexual and reproductive health, sexual conduct and key populations,” by Veronica Birga, Luisa Cabal, Lucinda O’Hanlon & Christina Zampas.   Reproductive Health Matters, 26.52 (2018): 33-37 Article online.

[abortion law, Argentina] Federalism, two-level games and the politics of abortion rights implementation in sub-national Argentina, by Alba Ruibal, in Reproductive Health Matters 26:54 (Nov. 2018): 137-144.   Article in English with abstracts in English. French & Spanish.

[abortion law, Argentina] “Legal obstacles and social change: strategies of the abortion rights movement in Argentina,” by Alba Ruibal and Cora Fernandez Anderson, in Politics, Groups and Identity,  preview November 2018, 17 pages.  Institutional access.   Abstract from Safe Abortion.

[abortion law, Argentina]”Federalism and subnational legal mobilization: feminist litigation strategies in Salta, Argentina,” by Alba Ruibal,  Law & Society Review,  32-page preview 29 October 2018. Institutional access.    Abstract from Safe Abortion.

[abortion law – Brazil]  Constitutionalizing Abortion in Brazil, by Marta Machado and Rebecca J. Cook, Revista de Investigações Constitucionais / Journal of Constitutional Research, vol. 5, n. 3 (set./dez. 2018) pp.185-231.  Abstract and Article PDF.   Also at SSRN.

[abortion law – Brazil and Mexico]  “Constitutionalism and rights protection in Mexico and Brazil: comparative remarks,“ by Francisca Pou Giménez, in Revista de Investigações Constitucionais / Journal of Constitutional Research, vol. 5, n. 3 (set./dez. 2018) pp 233-255  Abstract and article PDF.

[abortion law, Dominican Republic]  “It’s Your Decision.  It’s Your Life:  Total criminalization of abortion in the Dominican Republic.”  interviews, plus legal overview and recommendations.  (Human Rights Watch, Nov 19, 2018).   84 pages. English PDF    Spanish PDF.   Online in English.    Overview with 5-minute video.

[abortion law -Ireland]  “Abortion, the Irish Constitution, and constitutional change” by David Kenny, Revista de Investigações Constitucionais / Journal of Constitutional Research, vol. 5, n. 3 (set./dez. 2018) pp. 257-275.   Abstract and Article PDF.

[abortion law, Mexico] “Maternidad o Castigo:  La criminalización del aborto en Mexico,”  (Mexico, GIRE, 2018)  [Report in Spanish:] Informe de 72 paginas.  For executive summary in English, see: Motherhood or Punishment: The criminalization of abortion in Mexico:  English summary.

[abortion law] “Northern Ireland and Abortion Law Reform,” by Kathryn McNeilly, Fiona Bloomer and Claire Pierson,  Queen’s University, Ulster University and University of Liverpool, Sept. 2018, open access, 8 pages.  Briefing Paper.

[adolescents]  “(De)Criminalizing Adolescent Sex: A rights-based assessment of age of consent laws in Eastern and Southern Africa,” by Godfrey Dalitso Kangaude and Ann Skelton, SAGE Open (Oct-Dec 2018): 1 –12.   Article online.   Abstract.

[conscience]  “Objection ladies! Taking IPPF-EN v. Italy one step further, by Emmanuelle Bribosia, Ivana Isailovic and Isabelle  Rorive, in:  Integrated Human Rights in Practice:Rewriting Human Rights Decisions, ed. Eva Brems and Ellen Desmet (Cheltenham, UK:  Elgar, 2018).  Abstract and previous version.

[conscience]  “Religious Refusals and Reproductive Rights,” by Louise Melling, chapter 14 in:  The Conscience Wars: Rethinking the Balance between Religion, Identity, and Equality, ed. Susanna Mancini and Michel Rosenfeld (Cambridge, UK:  Cambridge University Press, 2018)  pp. 375-391.   Institutional Access.

[conscience]  “Seeking to square the circle:  Conscientious objection in Reproductive Healthcare” by Emmanuelle Bribosia and Isabelle  Rorive, chapter 15 in:  The Conscience Wars: Rethinking the Balance between Religion, Identity, and Equality, ed. Susanna Mancini and Michel Rosenfeld (Cambridge, UK:  Cambridge University Press, 2018)  pp. 392-413.  Institutional Access.    Abstract and previous version

 

[gender stereotyping, I.V. v. Bolivia, sterilization]  “The human rights impact of gender stereotyping in the context of reproductive health care,” by Ciara O’Connell and Christina Zampas,  International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 144 (2019):  116–121.  PDF online here.

[maternal health] Impact of reproductive evolutionary mismatch on women’s health and the need for action and research, by Mahmoud F. Fathalla, International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 144 (Feb. 2019): 129–134.  Institutional Access.  

[New book] Beyond Virtue and Vice:  Rethinking Human Rights and Criminal Law
ed.  Alice M. Miller and Mindy Jane Roseman,  Pennsylvania Studies in Human Rights (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2019)  360 pages. Book information.
Intro and chapters 1 and 3 online.
Chapters about abortion law include:
ο    “Abortion as Treason: Sexuality and nationalism in France” by Mindy Jane Roseman
ο    “Criminal Law, Activism and Sexual and Reproductive Justice: What we can learn from the sex selection campaign in India,” by Geetanjali Misra and Vrinda Marwah
ο    “Harm Production: An argument for decriminalization,”  by Joanna N. Erdman

JOBS

Links to employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here.

Senior Vice President, Global Legal Program, Center for Reproductive Rights, New York, USA.    Job details and application form.

______________
Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here. TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

 

 

 

 

REPROHEALTHLAW Updates – May 2018

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW: To receive these updates monthly by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS:

[Africa – Kenya]  J O O (also known as J M) v Attorney General & 6 others [2018] Petition No 5 of 2014, (High Court of Kenya at Bungoma).  [obstetric violence – abuse of pregnant women in healthcare system] 
Decision of March 22, 2018.

[Africa – Malawi, vagrancy] Mayeso Gwanda v. the State, Constitutional Case No 5. 2015  (High Court of Malawi. [successful human rights challenge involving an itinerant male vendor] Decision of January 10, 2017
— This decision cites the unreported case of Stella Mwanza and 12 Others v. Republic, Confirmation Criminal Case No. 1049 of 2007 (Malawi) [re 13 women arrested on streets after dark] discussed Legal Grounds III: Reproductive and Sexual Rights in Sub-Saharan African Courts  (Pretoria, Pretoria University Law Press (PULP), 2017), p. 127  PDF of book, 228 pages. Online edition

[Mexico] Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación, Segunda Sala [Supreme Court] 2018,  Amparo en Revisión 601/2017 (Ciudad de Mexico) April 4, 2018.  [Case of “Marimar”- raped minor should not have been denied abortion by hospital]   Decision in Spanish.   News report in English.

[Mexico] Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación, Segunda Sala [Supreme Court] 2018,  Amparo en Revisión 1170/2017 (Ciudad de Mexico) April 18, 2018.  [Case of Fernanda – public institutions must allow abortions to raped minor]  Decision in Spanish.     Same news report in English.

CALL FOR PAPERS
 “The Impact of Politics on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights,” for publication in Reproductive Health Matters, May 2019.  Submissions due October 31, 2018.
RHM Call for papers

CONFERENCE

V Latin American Congress on Reproductive Rights, Santa Marta, Colombia, November 1-3, 2018.    Congress website in Spanish.  Latin American Judges and Magistrates of the highest courts will gather to foster the inclusion of a gender perspective in judicial decisions regarding reproductive rights:  Synopsis in English.

Audio-visual resources from previous IV Latin American Conference, held in Lima Peru Nov 2-4, 2015, now published online, include many talks in Spanish, and some in English:
◊   Rebecca Cook, “Gender Stereotypes: Transnational Legal Perspectives,” (Nov. 3, 2015)   Video.     Slides
◊  Marge Berer, “Violence and Reproductive Rights.” (Nov. 3, 2015)  Video
◊   Joanna Erdman, “Violence against Women and Reproductive Rights: Revealing Connections.”  Nov. 2, 2015    Video.     Slides

SCHOLARSHIP:

Abortion Law Decisions online, a Table of Cases with links, recently updated.  English.   Spanish.

[abortion] “The Philippines: New post-abortion care policy” by Melissa Upreti and Jihan Jacob,  International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 141.2 (May 2018): 268-275.  Abstract.     PDF online for 12 months.   Submitted text at SSRN.

“Abortion in Poland: politics, progression and regression,” by Julia Hussein, Jane Cottingham, Wanda Nowicka & Eszter Kismodi,  Reproductive Health Matters 26:52 (May 2018): 14-17.   Editorial online.

[conscience, Human Rights Committee, Ireland]:
“Sir Nigel Rodley’s Insights on the Feminist Transformation of the Right of Conscience,”  by Rebecca Cook,  Human Rights Quarterly 40.2 (May 2018): 255-259.   Abstract and Article.

[conscience, U.S.A.] “Divisions, New and Old — Conscience and Religious Freedom at HHS by Lisa H. Harris, New England Journal of Medicine 478.15 (April 12 2018): 1369-1371.   Article online.

[Ireland] “Conscientious Objection, Harm Reduction and Abortion Care,” by Ruth Fletcher, in: Mary Donnelly and Claire Murray eds.  Ethical and legal debates in Irish healthcare: Confronting complexities Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2016, ISBN: 978-0-7190-9946-5, Book details.     Abstract and Chapter online.

[Ireland] “Reproductive justice in Ireland: a feminist analysis of the Neary and Halappanavar cases” by Joan McCarthy, in: Mary Donnelly and Claire Murray eds.  Ethical and legal debates in Irish healthcare: Confronting complexities Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2016, ISBN: 978-0-7190-9946-5, Book details.   Abstract of Chapter.

[Ireland – medical abortion] “Empowerment and Privacy? Home Use of Abortion Pills in the Republic of Ireland,” by Sally Sheldon, Journal of Women in Culture and Society 43.4(Summer 2018): 823-849.   Abstract and Article.

[Malawi] “Adolescent sex and ‘defilement’ in Malawi law and society,” by Godfrey D. Kangaude 17 (2017) African Human Rights Law Journal 527-549.    Article online.   Abstract with other African resources.

[medical abortion]  “Medical abortion pills have the potential to change everything about abortion,” introduction by  Marge Berer and Lesley Hoggart to special issue of Contraception 97.2 (Feb 2018″ 79–81.  Sections on medical abortion potential, women’s experiences, pharmacy provision, role of health system and providers, and research agenda.   Table of Contents, Medical Abortion special issue.

[Uruguay, human rights]  “Legal barriers to access abortion services through a human rights lens: the Uruguayan experience,” by Lucía Berro Pizzarossa, Reproductive Health Matters 26.52 (2018): 1-8    Abstract and article.

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available  on Repro Rights Prof Blog.   View or subscribe.

NEWS:

German doctor will appeal 6000-euro fine for “advertising” abortions among other medical specialties on her website.  Comment by Stephanie Schlitt, “Criminal prohibition of abortion ‘advertising’ restricts information provision,” Brief comment.  Detailed comment.

Ireland:  May 25th 2018 Referendum voted to repeal article 40.3.3 “the eighth amendment” which had enshrined a ban on abortion.” Law reform expected.  Christina Zampas editorial in Irish Examiner: “Yes Vote would give hope to millions. . . “.     Irish Times newspaper analyzes results.

JOBS

Links to employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here

______________
Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here. TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

REPROHEALTHLAW Updates – Feb. 2017

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW: To receive these updates monthly by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS:

AB and Surrogacy Advisory Group v. the Minister of Social Development (Centre for Child Law as Amicus Curiae)  CCT 155/15, decided November 29, 2016 (Constitutional Court of South Africa).  Genetic link to one parent is required, and constitutional.   Surrogacy decision.   Summary by Ronaldah Lerato Karabo Ozah.

CALLS:

Meeting: INROADS (International Network for the Reduction of Abortion Discrimination and Stigma), African regional members’ gathering in Lusaka, Zambia, 29-30 May 2017.  Free membership. Free registration.   Financial support for travel expenses: apply by Wed March 8, 2017.

CFP: Sexual and reproductive health and rights in humanitarian crises, especially essays re heightened risk and vulnerability, interventions and responses, and legal and policy issues, for Reproductive Health Matters 26:51.   Submit by May 31, 2017. Call for papers.

Call for volunteer experts in sexual and reproductive health rights to review and validate country-specific data for the “National Sexual Rights Law and Policy Database.” Contact person and Countries where expertise needed.   About the database.    About the Sexual Rights Initiative.

RESOURCES
[abortion law] “Regulating Abortion: Dissensus and the Politics of Rights”  Social and Legal Studies: an international journal, 25.6 (2016): 6-166. Online for institutional subscribers.
— Introduction, by editor Siobhan Mullally
— The Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013: Suicide, Dignity and the Irish Discourse on Abortion, by Clare Murray
— Gender in Constitutional Discourses on Abortion: Looking at Spain from a Comparative Perspective, by Blanca Rodríguez-Ruiz
— Advocating Abortion Rights in Northern Ireland: Local and Global Tensions, by Catherine O’Rourke
— Killing ‘Unborn Children’? The Catholic Church and Abortion Law in Poland Since 1989, by Dorota Szelewa
— Abortion Rights as Human Rights, by Rachel Rebouché
–Talking about Abortion [in the U.S.], by Carol Sanger
 Online for institutional subscribers.

[abortion – Ireland]  “Fatal Fetal Abnormality, Irish Constitutional Law and Mellet v. Ireland,” by Fiona de Londras, Medical Law Review (2016) 24 (4): 591-607.  Article – 17 pages.

[abortion – Ireland]  “Invisible Women:  Ireland and the Fight to Access Safe and Legal Abortion,” by Chiara Cosentino, Medicina nei Secoli Arte e Scienza (Journal of History of Medicine) 28/2 (2016) 413-434.  Online for institutional subscribers.

[African court decisions]  Legal Grounds:  Reproductive and Sexual Rights in Sub-Saharan African Courts, Volume III:  54 African court cases summarized and analyzed by Godfrey Kangaude, Onyema Afulukwe, Guy-Fleury Ntwari, et. al (Pretoria University Law Press (PULP), 2017) 228 pages from PULP.   Overview including previous volumes.

[conscientious objection] “Conscientious objection to abortion provision: Why context matters” by Laura Florence Harris, Jodi Halpern, Ndola Prata, Wendy Chavkin, Caitlin Gerdts,  Global Public Health 12 September 2016; Online for institutional subscribers

[conscientious objection] “Freedom of Conscience, Medical Practitioners and Abortion in South Africa,” by  Shaun Alberto de Freitas, International Journal for Religious Freedom, 4.1 (2011) Abstract and Article

“Conscience and Agent-Integrity: A Defence of Conscience-Based Exemptions in the Healthcare Context” by Mary Neal and Sara Fovargue,  Medical Law Review  (2016) 24 (4): 544-570. Online for institutional subscribers.

Conscientious Objection and Conscientious Commitment – publications by Bernard M. Dickens et al., and recommended reading.  Conscientious Objection publications

[embryos] The Use and Disposal of Stored Embryos, by Bernard M. Dickens.  International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 134 (2016) 114–117. Abstract and Article.

[Inter-American Human Rights] “Women’s Reproductive Rights and Reparations: Lessons from the Inter-American System of Human Rights,” by Ciara O’Connell, in Inter-American Human Rights Network, Moving Beyond the Good, the Bad and the Ugly: What to Learn From International Human Rights Systems?” Ghent, Belgium (29-30 January 2016). Conference paper.

[Uruguay model] “Reducing Maternal Mortality by Preventing Unsafe Abortion: The Uruguayan Experience.” ed. Anibal Faúndes,  International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 134, Sup 1 (Aug 2016). Articles include surveys before and after legalization, reduction in maternal deaths, role of medical abortion, barriers of conscientious objection and replication of the model in Buenos Aires province, Argentina.  IJGO Supplement

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available on Repro Rights Prof Blog.  View or subscribe.

NEWS

Abortion News Without the Stigma: breaking news on abortion rights.  New website tool

[Canada] “Mifegymiso” – abortion pill now available to Canadian women  Newspaper article

[Sicily, Italy] Valentina Milluzzo, aged 32, 5 months pregnant with twins when she miscarried, fell ill and died from sepsis.  Her death has reignited debate about the high number of gynaecologists and obstetricians who refuse to provide abortions.   Guardian newspaper.  Article by Elizabeth Canitano, gynecologist from “Vita di Donna” (Lives of Women)

JOBS

Links to other employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here

______________
Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here. TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

REPROHEALTHLAW – Decisions, Courses and Resources

REPROHEALTHLAW
February 26, 2015

DECISIONS:

CEDAW:  Ángela González Carreño v. Spain – decision of July 18, 2014, held the State responsible for gender violence and negligence that led to child’s murder.  Decision now available in 6 languages.  Case overview and details.

European Commission:  Historic decision Jan 8, 2015 from the European Commission grants 120 million women access to ellaOne (ulipristal acetate) emergency contraception over-the-counter without prescription throughout the European Union,  Europe press release.     Ministry of Health in Poland will allow sales over-the-counter, including to teens over 15 (age of consent).   Poland press release.  So far, only Hungary insists on prescriptions.  Hungary press release.

COURSES:
“Women and International Human Rights Law” Intensive course taught by Elizabeth Abi-Mershed and Rebecca Cook
“Mujeres y el Derecho Internacional de los Derechos Humanos” por Monica Roa y Julissa Mantilla
Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Washington College of Law, American University, Washington DC, USA,  program runs May 26 to June 12, 2015, brochure online.
This Advanced Progam includes 16 other English or Spanish intensive courses taught by more than 40 prominent human rights scholars and practitioners.  Apply by May 1, 2015 using this link.

RESOURCES

[abortion – new book] Good Catholics: The Battle over Abortion in the Catholic Church, by Patricia Miller, University of California Press, 2014, 344 pp.  Description and Table of Contents.  3 reviews in Conscience Magazine.

Abortion Law in Transnational Perspective:  Cases and Controversies, ed. Rebecca J. Cook, Joanna N. Erdman and Bernard M. Dickens, 16 chapters.  University of Pennsylvania Press, 2014, 482 pages. Introduction by the editors: online through SSRN. Book reviewers should contact Gigi Lamm (glamm {a} pobox. upenn. edu) Includes 16 chapters, Table of Legislation, Table of Cases, also online here, with links to abortion-related decisions in English and/or other languages). Table of Contents online here. Purchase info: link to U Penn Press.

—Why I Edited This Book, Abortion Law in Transnational Perspective: Cases and Controversies  Blog post by Joanna Erdman.

[abortion] Reproductive Health Matters  special issue “Law and the Courts” (Vol. 22, Issue 44),  Available online to institutional subscribers.
Issue Highlights:
—“Contesting the cruel treatment of abortion-seeking women,” by Ruth Fletcher
—“Abortion in Chile: the practice under a restrictive regime” by Lidia Casas and Lieta Vivaldi
—“The shifting politics in multilateral development and human rights negotiations and the absence of accountability,” by Stuart Halford and Sandeep Prasad
—“Can a restrictive law serve a protective purpose? The impact of age-restrictive laws on young people’s access to sexual and reproductive health services” by Elizabeth Yarrow, Kirsten Anderson, Kara Apland, and Katherine Watson
—” Gender inequality in Russia: the perspective of participatory gender budgeting” by Venera Zakirova

[Africa – new book]  Strengthening the protection of sexual and reproductive health and rights in the African region through human rights, ed. Charles Ngwena and Ebenezer Durojaye (Pretoria, South Africa:  Pretoria University Law Press (PULP), 2014) 12 chapters, 365 pages.   Entire book PDF   Overview and Table of Contents.

[Africa: Nigeria/Global]  Comparative Health Law and Policy:   Critical Perspectives on Nigerian and Global Health Law,  ed. Irehobhude O. Iyioha and Remigius N. Nwabueze (UK:  Ashgate 2015), 335 pages.  summary and table of contents.

[Conscience]  “Making Decisions About Decision-Making: Conscience, Regulation and the Law,” José Miola, University of Leicester School of Law Research Paper No. 15-02. Online through SSRN.

“Litigating Reproductive Health Rights in the Inter-American System: What Does a Winning Case Look Like?” by Ciara O’Connell, (2015). Health and Human Rights Journal 16(2) (2014); RegNet Research Paper No. 2015/62. Article online through SSRN.

New Resources in Spanish:

[Human Rights to assisted reproduction] “El derecho humano a contar con asistencia médica para fundar una familia,” by Bernard Dickens,  in Bioética, reproducción y familia,  ed. Fernando Zegers H.  & Sofía P. Salas, (Santiago: Ediciones Universidad Diego Portales, 2014), 83-115.  Spanish overview of the book

[Conscientious Objection and Compromise] “Objeción de conciencia y compromiso en conciencia,” by Bernard Dickens in Bioética, reproducción y familia,  ed. Fernando Zegers H.  & Sofía P. Salas, (Santiago: Ediciones Universidad Diego Portales, 2014), 145-182.  Spanish overview of the book

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available on Repro Rights Prof Blog. View or subscribe.

Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here.
TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

REPROHEALTHLAW Updates: Developments, Calls, Resources and News

REPROHEALTHLAW BLOG,  June 2014

SUBSCRIBE TO REPROHEALTHLAW:  To receive these updates monthly by email, enter your address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

DEVELOPMENTS:

United Kingdom:  Doctors will be able to approve abortions after conducting consultations over the phone or by Skype, according to new guidance  News article.

United Kingdom: A British high court judge ruled that a 13-year-old girl was mentally capable of deciding to abort her baby  News article.

CALLS AND CONFERENCES:

Call for Abstracts: Overcoming Obstacles – Towards the effective implementation of the rights of women with disabilities in Africa, Center for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, South Africa, Tues/Wed Nov 4-5, 2014, Submit abstract by June 15, 2014.    Call for abstracts online.

“Abortion: The Unfinished Revolution”
August 7-8,  2014 at the University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada  preliminary program   more info.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

Harvard Course on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Litigation. 3-day intensive course Nov. 3-5, plus invitation to “Sexual and Reproductive Rights ‘Lawfare’ in International Tribunals,” 2-day international symposium,  on November 6-7, 2014.  Apply by July 1, 2014.  Course details online.

RESOURCES

Abortion Care, ed. Sam Rowlands, forthcoming, Cambridge University Press,  August 2014.  Paperback.  Further details.   Chapters include:
~  Abortion in international human rights law, by Joanna N. Erdman
~  the Australian experience, by Kerry Petersen
~  Stigma and issues of conscience, by Kelly R. Culwell and Caitlin Gerdts

Abortion Law in Transnational Perspective:  Cases and Controversies,  ed. Rebecca J. Cook, Joanna N. Erdman and Bernard M. Dickens, 16 chapters.  Forthcoming, University of Pennsylvania Press, August 2014.  To receive details when it is published, email reprohealth. law\at/ utoronto. ca with subject “abortion book flyer”.

[abortion – adolescents] “Sixteen and Pregnant: Minors’ Consent in Abortion and Adoption,” by Malinda L. Seymore. Yale Journal of Law & Feminism 25.1 2013. Abstract and Article.

[abortion advocacy strategy] “Using Aikido to Change the Abortion Conversation” (using quotes from bible & saints for pro-choice purposes)   by Valerie Tarico, RH Reality Check article.

[abortion – European Court of Human Rights]    “[The Judgement A, B and C v. Ireland and the Question of Abortion: A ‘New Departure’ in the European Court of Human Rights on Consensus and Margin of Appreciation?] 
= La sentencia A, B y C contra Irlanda y la cuestión del aborto: ¿Un ‘punto de inflexión’ en la jurisprudencia del Tribunal Europeo de Derechos Humanos en materia de consenso y margen de apreciación nacional?”   by Francisco Javier Mena Parras,  Anuario de Derechos Humanos No. 8, 2012, pp. 115-124.   Abstracts in Spanish and English,   Article in Spanish.

[abortion – sex selection.] “Replacing Myths with Facts: Sex-Selective Abortion Laws in the United States.”  by the International Human Rights Clinic of the University of Chicago, in partnership with National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) and Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH). (2014)   Abstract and 46-page report.

[conscience] “Religion as a Legal Proxy” by Micah Schwartzman, forthcoming,  San Diego Law Review,  Abstract and article online.

“Conscientious objection and refusal to provide reproductive healthcare: A white paper examining prevalence, health consequences, and policy responses,” by Wendy Chavkin, Liddy Leitman, and Kate Polin, for Global Doctors for Choice  69-page paper in English. now also in Spanish.
—“ ‘Dishonourable disobedience’ – Why refusal to treat in reproductive healthcare is not conscientious objection” by Christian Fiala and  Joyce H. Arthur, forthcoming  in Woman – Psychosomatic Gynaecology and Obstetrics, proofs online
—Followup blogpost: “Competing Rights: Exploring the Boundaries of ‘Conscientious Objection” by Wendy Chavkin online at RH Reality Check.

[divorce – Philippines] “Reintroduction of Divorce in the Philippines,” LL.M. thesis by Jihan Jacob.  Abstract online, with author’s contact information

Ethical and Legal Issues in Reproductive Health – 65 articles published in the International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics  available online, including Reducing Stigma in Reproductive Health, and  Noninvasive pre-natal genetic diagnosis .

[Poland] 6th Congress of Women, May 9-10, 2014, Warsaw, Poland, 10 demands include:  “Recognition of women’s rights to make decisions concerning reproduction, including right to sex education for everyone introduced in primary school.” presented to Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.  Demands online.

[sterilization] Eliminating forced, coercive and otherwise involuntary sterilization – An interagency statement by OHCHR, UN Women, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO, May 2014, 17 page report

[women’s rights] “Women’s Charters and Declarations: Building Another World,” by Rashida Manjoo (United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women)  (London: Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML), 2013)  89-page report 

[wrongful birth – Canada] “Supressing Damages in Involuntary Parenthood Actions: Contorting Tort Law, Denying Reproductive Freedom, and Discriminating Against Mothers” by Bruce Feldthusen, (working paper, May 5, 2014).

NEWS

[child marriage – Pakistan] Bill prohibiting child marriage now a law.  News report

Chile Might Change One Of The Most Restrictive Abortion Laws In The World.    News Article.  Later article.

[embryos] European Commission will not stop financing activities that destroy embryos.  Reply to “One of Us” initiative, may 28, 2014.  Press release in many languages.

[Guyana]  Plans being refined to offer abortion service at public hospitals – Chief Medical Officer says.  News article.

Jamaican MP, Dayton Campbell, a medical doctor and lawyer, advocates reform of “ancient” abortion laws –  June 1, 2014  newspaper article.

[polygamy – Kenya]   President Uhuru Kenyatta Signs controversial law legalizing the longstanding customary practice of polygamy.
BBC Report .  CNN Report.

[Senegal]  11-year-old girl, refused abortion after rape, gives birth prematurely to twins. News article.

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available on Repro Rights Prof Blog.  View or subscribe.

JOBS

Links to other employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here

Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca   For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here. TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage,, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

 

 

Decisions, Calls, Resources, News & Jobs

REPROHEALTHLAW-L
November 22, 2013

DECISIONS

Australia – Tasmania: New abortion law allows terminations up to 16 weeks with the woman’s consent, and after that if two doctors agree on medical or psychological grounds.  News article

Brazil:  New law guarantees treatment, including emergency contraception, for rape victims in public hospitals.   English news.  Spanish news.

CEDAW General recommendation No. 30 on women in conflict prevention, conflict and post-conflict situations, Paragraph 52 mentions “access to sexual and reproductive health and rights information; . . . family
planning services, including emergency contraception;. . .  safe abortion services; post-abortion care . . .” Advance Unedited version, October 13, 2013  CEDAW Gen. Rec. 30.

European Court of Human Rights:   Costa and Pavan v. Italy, No. 54270/10, 28th August 2012 (re assisted reproduction), found violation of Article 8.   Ban preventing healthy carriers of cystic fibrosis from screening embryos for in vitro fertilisation, despite existence of right to therapeutic abortion in domestic law.  Court decided violation of Article 8, Right to respect for private and family life.   Decision online.  Brief Comment by Adriana DiStefano  in Strasbourg Observer. Academic article by Gregor Puppinck online at SSRN.

Ireland: Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 allows abortion only when woman’s life is at risk, including from suicide. signed into law July 30, 2013.   Newspaper article.    CRR Legal Analysis.  Articles in special issue of Irish Journal of Legal Studies:  O’Sullivan et al.   Schweppe et al.

Ireland:  Verdict of “medical misadventure” in 2010 maternal death in Irish hospital.  Bimbo Onanuga (32) died after being induced to deliver a stillborn baby.  News article.     Details of case from Association for Improvements in the Maternity Services (AIMS), Ireland.

CALLS

Call for Applications, PhD Fellowship in Gender Equality Measurement, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada – Apply by Jan 15, 2014.  Fellowship details.  Facebook page.

Call for Abstracts and Conference Registration. “Eliminating Women and Girls’ Sexual and Reproductive Health Vulnerabilities in Africa”, 6th Africa Conference on Sexual Health and Rights,  Yaounde, Cameroon,  February 3-7, 2014,
Conference announcement. 
Call for Abstracts, due Dec 13, 2013  
Registration.  Early bird deadline: 15 December 2013.

Call for Submissions on  Child Early and Forced Marriage  to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) due Dec 15, 2013, for a UN Report.  Details online.

RESOURCES:

[abortion – Australia] “The Legal and Factual Status of Abortion in Australia,” by Ronli Sifris (2013) 38:2 Alternative Law Journal 108.  Article online.

[abortion] “Dignity and the Duty to Protect Unborn Life,” by Reva B. Siegel  in Understanding Human Dignity ed. Christopher McCrudden, 2014) Forthcoming; Yale Law School, Public Law Working Paper No. 294. Article online.

[abortion- Brazil] “Brazilians have different views on when abortion should be legal, but most do not agree with imprisoning women for abortion.” by Anibal Faundes, Graciana Alves Duarte, Maria Helena de Sousa, Rodrigo Pauperio Soares Camargo, and Rodolfo Carvalho Pacagnella, Reproductive Health Matters featured article online.

[abortion – European Union] Draft Report on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights. Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, Rapporteur: Edite Estrela, calls for universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights throughout Europe, including  safe and legal abortion services.   After controversial debate, report was sent back to the Committee.  15-page report.

[abortion – funding – Canada] “Analysis of Canada’s refusal to fund abortion services abroad.”  Policy brief prepared by Action Canada for Population and Development (ACPD) 4 page analysis.

[abortion – Ireland)  “Article 40.3.3 and the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013: The Impetus for, and Process of, Legislative Change,” by Catherine O’Sullivan, Jennifer Schweppe and Eimear A. Spain, (2013) Irish Journal of Legal Studies 1-17.  Introduction to special issue.

[abortion – Ireland] “When is a Foetus Not an Unborn? Fatal Foetal Abnormalities and Article 40.3.3” by Jennifer Schweppe and Eimear A. Spain, (2013) Irish Journal of Legal Studies 92-110. Article online.

[abortion – Ireland, Poland] Procedural Obligations Under the European Convention on Human Rights: An Instrument to Ensure a Broader Access to Abortion, by Gregor Puppinck, Zeszyty Prawnicze (Waszawa), SSN-1643-8183, 2013.  Abstract and article online.

[abortion – Muslim-majority countries] Liberal abortion rights in some Muslim-majority countries, by Gilla Shapiro. Literature review.

[abortion – Northern Ireland] draft “Guidance on the Limited Circumstances of Termination of Pregnancy” issued by Department of Health in Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland draft guidelines.   Rights-based critique  by Dr. Catherine O’Rourke, critique online.

[abortion – Poland] Women’s Reproductive Rights as a Political Price of Post-Communist Transformation in Poland”  by Joanna Diane Caytas, Amsterdam Law Forum 5.2 (Spring 2013): 64-89.  Article online

[abortion: South Africa] “Personhood: Proving the Significance of the Born-Alive Rule with Reference to Medical Knowledge of Foetal Viability”  by Camilla Pickles,  2013 24(1) Stellenbosch Law Review 146-164.  Abstract online.

Abortion stigma webinar summary, based on research by ANSIRH and Ipas.  Abortion stigma webinars.

[Abortion – Uganda] “The Stakes are High:  The Tragic Impact of Unsafe Abortion and Inadequate Access to Contraception in Uganda,” 2013 report from the Center for Reproductive Rights and Georgetown law school.  74-page report

[assisted reproduction] “The Case of Costa and Pavan v. Italy and the Convergence between Human Rights and Biotechnologies. Commentary on the ECHR Ruling in Costa and Pavan v. Italy, No. 54270/10, 28th August 2012,” Quaderni di Diritto Mercato Tecnologia – N°3, Anno III  (2013). Abstract and article online.

[CEDAW] The UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, A Commentary. ed. Marsha A. Freeman, Christine Chinkin, and Beate Rudolf, Oxford 2012   Now available in Paperback and eBook.  paperback details.

[conscience] “Freedom of Conscience in Health Care: Distinctions and Limits,” Sean Murphy and Stephen J. Genuis, Journal of Bioethical Inquiry 10.3 (Oct 2013) pp 347-354, online here.

[emergency contraception] “A review of global access to emergency contraception,” by Elizabeth Westley, Nathalie Kapp, Tia Palermo, Jennifer Bleck in International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 123 (2013) 4–6.  Online by subscription.

Global Health and Human Rights Database (new)  a free and fully searchable online database of more than 1000 judgments, constitutions and international instruments on the intersection between health and human rights. GH&HR database online.

Health and Human Rights Syllabus Database (new) includes dozens of syllabi from universities around the world.  H&HR Syllabus Database.

[health and human rights] “Bringing Justice to Health: The Impact of Legal Empowerment Projects on Public Health” [profiles projects based in Indonesia, Kenya, Macedonia, Russia, South Africa & Uganda] 58-page report from Open Society.     Summary.

[maternal mortality – causes and factors]  “Why Did Mrs. X Die?: Retold”(2012)  updated remake of World Health Organization 1988 film by Dr. Mahmoud Fathalla, explores socio-economic factors that pave the road to maternal death.  In English and Arabic:
English 15 minute video.   Arabic 15 minute video.

[maternal mortality – CEDAW – Brazil – Alyne] “Evaluating States’ Failure to Eliminate Discrimination against Women using Substantive Equality” by Meghan Campbell, OP CEDAW blog article.

[Tanzania]  “Forced Out:  Mandatory Pregnancy Testing and the Expulsion of Pregnant Students in Tanzanian Schools,” Center for Reproductive Rights – 80-page report.

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available on Repro Rights Prof Blog.  View or subscribe:
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/reproductive_rights/

NEWS

[abortion – Ireland] Three Irish women forced to travel for abortions to take cases to UN — Ireland’s ban on abortions for fatal foetal abnormalities amounts to ’cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment’  Article in Irish Times.  CRR Press Release re case of Amanda Mellet.   Article in Independent.

[Bolivia] UN Human Rights Committee recommendations call on Bolivia to cease prosecuting women for illegal abortions and to remove judicial barriers to legal abortion. Ipas Press Release.

[Chile] Controversial case [of “Belem” – pregnant 11-year-old abused by her stepfather] opens up discussion of abortion in Chile.  News article.
Spanish Petition to decriminalize abortion in Chile  Petition online.
Spanish video about decriminalizing abortion in Chile.  Online here.
Spanish Declaration by NGOs – NGO declaration

Dominican Republic: Women’s Link Worldwide and the Colectiva Mujer y Salud filed a case in the Dominican Republic on behalf of Rosa Hernández, whose daughter Esperancita  was denied therapeutic abortion, leukemia treatment and palliative care which might affect the fetus.
Details from Women’s Link Worldwide

China one-child law change small but crucial, say experts.  Only-child parents may have two children.  News article.

JOBS

Assistant/Associate Professor of African Studies/Women’s Studies,  Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania, U.S.    Apply by  November 30, 2013.  PSU job details.

Assistant Professor, Women, Gender And Sexuality Studies,  Oregon State University, Corvallis Oregon
Apply by  December 1, 2013  OSU job details.

Visiting Assistant Professor or Instructor, Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies, Middlebury College,  Middlebury, Vermont, USA, Apply by December 9, 2013  Middlebury job details.

Technical Support Consultant on women’s human rights – based on CEDAW recommendations.   UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Home-based, Closing date: November 30, 2013.  Expert roster

Links to other employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here

Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto.ca For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here. TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.

Calls, Conferences, Resources, News and Jobs

REPROHEALTHLAW-L

CALLS

Call for Papers, Health and Human Rights, an open-access peer-reviewed journal. Special issue on Health Rights litigation, submit by Feb. 15, 2014.  Information.

CONFERENCES

Health and Human Rights Conference: Shaping Inclusive Health Policy.  Keynote speaker is Stephen Lewis.   Nov. 1-2, 2013, Queen’s University, New Medical Building, 15 Arch Street, Kingston, ON, Canada
Registration and information.

Bioethics, Medical Ethics and Health Law: Towards the 21st Century.  Royal Continental Congress Center, Naples, Italy, Nov. 19-21, 2013.   Conference information. 

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

Georgetown University Law School is now accepting applications for:
Global Health Law LL.M. Program and
Global Health Law and International Institutions LL.M. Program,
jointly offered with the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (IHEID) in Geneva, Switzerland.  Also accepting applications for Global Health Law Scholarship for full or partial tuition waivers.

RESOURCES

“Abortion and the European Convention on Human Rights” by Gregor Puppinck,  Irish Journal of Legal Studies, Vol. 3(2) 2013: 142-193.
Article online.

[abortion – Australia]  “The Offence of Child Destruction: Issues for Medical Abortion”  by Mark J. Rankin, [2013] SydLawRw 1; (2013) 35(1) Sydney Law Review 1.  Article online.

[abortion – Colombia] “The Cost of Postabortion Care and Legal Abortion In Colombia” [including government policy implications], by Elena Prada, Isaac Maddow-Zimet and Fatima Juarez, International Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health 39.3 (Sept 2013): 114-123
News Release.    Article online.

[abortion – foreign aid] “Abortion Restrictions in U.S. Foreign Aid: The History and Harms of the Helms Amendment,” by Sneha Barot, Guttmacher Policy Review 16.3 (Summer 2013): 9-13.  Article online.

[abortion law -UK] “Can English law accommodate moral controversy in medicine?  The case of abortion” by Margaret Brazier in Bioethics, Medicine and the Criminal Law, Vol. 1: The Criminal Law and Bioethical Conflict: Walking the Tightrope, ed. A. Alghrani, R. Bennett & S. Ost, Cambridge UP, 2013.   More info on book.

[Canada]  Law as a Tool for Addressing Social Determinants of Health by Martha Jackman.  In: Nola M. Ries, Tracey Bailey and Timothy Caulfield eds. Public Health Law & Policy in Canada, 3rd ed, 91-129, July 2013. Article online.

Child Marriage in South Asia:  International and Constitutional Legal Standards and Jurisprudence for Promoting Accountability and Change.  Center for Reproductive Rights.  75-page Briefing paper 

[child marriage] Accountability for Child Marriage:  Key U.N. Recommendations to Governments in South Asia on Reproductive Health and Sexual Violence.   11-page Fact Sheet 

Child Marriage in India: Socio-legal and Human Rights Dimensions by Jaya Sagade,  2nd edition, Oxford University Press, 2012     Overview.      Table of Contents.

[conscience]  “Contraception and the Birth of Corporate Conscience,” by Elizabeth Sepper, American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law, Forthcoming; Washington University in St. Louis Legal Studies Research Paper, 13-07-01. Article online.

Health, Citizenship, and Human Rights Advocacy Initiative: Improving Access To Health Services in Mexico” by Almudena Ocejo, International Budget Partnership Impact Case Study No. 15, July 2013. Article online.

[health and human rights], New book:  Global Health Disputes and Disparities: A Critical Appraisal of International Law and Population Health, by Dru Bhattacharya (Routledge, 2013) 184 pages) Book details.
Chapter 2 online:  “A Critical Assessment of Treaty-Monitoring Bodies: A Case Study of CEDAW’s Optional Protocol” online here.

Reproductive Health and Women’s Rights Curricula –  Syllabi for our courses:  “Reproductive and Sexual Health Law,” “Women’s Rights in Transnational Law,” “Case Studies in Health and Human Rights,” and “Women and International Human Rights Law”  all online here.

NEWS

Abortion Rights in Latin America: A Tale of Varying Woes.
Overview and update.

Bangladesh:  High Court Issues Rule on the Prohibition of “Two Finger” Test on Women and Girl Survivors of Rape.   Press release 

Canada: Foreign aid funds for maternal health initiative will not cover abortions for victims of rape or child marriage.  Newspaper report.

Complex Science at Issue in Politics of Fetal Pain.   New York Times.  News article.

El Salvador:  Women jailed for miscarriages  Slate magazine article.

Jamaica:  Policing women’s bodies by Carolyn Cooper, UWI.
Article online.

Nigeria:  Imo Governor repeals recent law allowing abortion  victims of rape or incest.  News item.

Polish Parliament rejects draft law to ban abortion on grounds of fetal malformation.   Sept 27, 2013.  Voting Tally.

[South Africa] Abortion in South Africa: a conspiracy of silence [legal abortion services not operational] News article.

Ugandan gynaecologists okay Misoprostol use to prevent excessive bleeding after childbirth by mothers who are unable to deliver in health facilities. (Oct 01, 2013)  News article.

UN Security Council Takes a Historic Stand Supporting Abortion Access for Women Raped in War.  AWID News.

US-focused news, resources, and legal developments are available on Repro Rights Prof Blog.  View or subscribe.

Vatican: Pope Francis denounces abortion after decrying church’s focus on rules.  CBS news item.

JOBS

Bernard J. Beazley Chair in Health Law and Policy, Full time professor Loyola University, Chicago USA.  Job details.

Associate, to work on domestic and global health law and policy projects, The O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Georgetown University, USA.  Apply by Nov. 30, 2013.  Associateship details.

Assistant/Associate Professor, Women’s and Gender Studies, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire.  USA.  Apply by Nov 15, 2013.
Job details.

Senior Gender Justice Advisor, Gender Resources, Inc., Papua New Guinea, for anticipated AusAID-funded Rule of Law project, JD or LLM degree required, Open until filled.   Job details.

Senior Gender Justice Advisor, Gender Resources, Inc., Indonesia,  for anticipated AusAID-funded Rule of Law project, JD or LLM degree required, Open until filled.  Job details.

Links to other employers in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Health Law are online here.

Compiled by the Coordinator of the International Reproductive and Sexual Health Law Program, reprohealth*law at utoronto*ca.   For Program publications and resources, see our website, online here.
TO JOIN THIS BLOG: enter your email address in upper right corner of this webpage, then check your email to confirm the subscription.