The current panorama of the legislation on the legal interruption of pregnancy in Mexico

Abstract

The interruption of pregnancy is a topic of great controversy in various areas. In Mexico, most criminal legislation defines abortion as the death of the product of conception at any time during pregnancy. With the evolution in the recognition and defense of human rights, it has currently been considered that the prohibition of abortion affects the exercise of reproductive freedom and access to health services, since it forces women to a procreation and are prevented from accessing safe abortion. Thus, approximately a third of local laws have modified the crime of abortion to define it as the interruption of pregnancy after the twelfth week of gestation; With this, a trend has begun towards not prohibiting this procedure during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy. However, it is not without ethical and legal implications, since health personnel may also object to participating for reasons of conscientious objection.