Ecuadorian President opposes abortion law

Quito (AP) — Ecuador's President Guillermo Rousseau allowed abortion by rape in parliament on Tuesday, including consolidating abortion deadlines and setting requirements for access to such rights.

In a message posted on Twitter, the President said: “My decisions will always be made within the limits specified in the constitutional functions. That is why we have decided to include an opinion on the bill so that it fits perfectly with the decision of the Constitutional Court.” He said.

It also urged the doctor's decision on conscientious objections to be extended to the requirement for abortion. Although the ruler declares himself a defender of life since pregnancy, he proposed to respect decisions that did not fit his thoughts. The appeal is made two days before the deadline for legal pronunciation, and the legislator must now rule for 30 days.

In mid-February, Congress passed the so-called Law on the Interruption of Rape Pregnancy in April, regulating the decision of the Constitutional Court to decriminalize abortion as a cause.

Thousands of rape and abortion crimes are reported each year in the country, which, for other reasons, can be sentenced to 5-7 years in prison for mothers and 1 to 3 years in prison for those who help them perform.

The Ecuadorian Prosecutor's Office registered more than 27,000 rape complaints between 2016 and 2020. 4,884 cases were reported in 2016, 5,045 in 2017, 5,667 in 2018, and 6,034 in 2019. Although it dropped to 5,450 in 2020, the decline was not due to a reduction in crime, but due to the fact that victims cannot leave due to policies in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

According to figures from the Human Rights Office, more than 3,000 girls between the ages of 10 and 14 are pregnant each year, and 12% of adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 have been pregnant at least once.

Among the American countries where pregnancy can be terminated unconditionally are Argentina, Uruguay and Cuba, but in the case of rape or incest, it is also allowed in the United States and Canada, Bolivia, Colombia and Peru. On the contrary, in Brazil, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay and Venezuela there are also Mexican countries that have added other causes, but abortion is prohibited unless it threatens the health of the mother.

El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic prohibit abortion without exception.