SOCI 365 Lecture Notes - Lecture 20: Unsafe Abortion, Sub-Saharan Africa, Reproductive Justice
5 May 2018
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Lecture 20 – February 27th
Abortion, reproductive rights and reproductive justice
• Reproductive justice
o Physical, mental, spiritual, political, social and economic well-being of
women and girls, based on full achievement and protection of women’s rights
o Emphasis on human rights issue
• Key points
o Self-determination of reproductive destiny
o This is linked to community conditions, not just individual access and choice
o Structural factors!!!
▪ Inequality and power imbalance
▪ Things restricting women and some men from fully realizing their
human rights
o Abortion is part of reproductive …. See slide
• Report released
o 8 maternal deaths every hour
o This number hasn’t changed in the last years
o Induced abortion vs. spontaneous abortion (miscarriage)
▪ Higher rate of abortions in developing countries than developed
▪ So as they decline, they are declining in places with safe abortions, not
unsafe abortions
o 25 million unsafe abortions each year in developing countries
▪ 8 million carried out in the least safe/most dangerous conditions
▪ Over ½ in Asia, ¾ in LA and Africa were unsafe
▪ Risk of death from unsafe abortion is highest in Africa
• Report results
o Since 1999 rate fallen from 35 to 29/1000 women
▪ But this is mostly in safe abortions, still same number of unsafe
abortions
o Abortions in developing countries outnumber those in developed countries
o Worldwide mortality due to abortions remained the same at 70,000
deaths/years (8 deaths/hour)
o 38000 sub-Saharan Africa, 24000 in south-central Asia
o Rate of unsafe abortions 14/1000 women of childbearing age
▪ 20 million annually
o 40% women of childbearing age live in countries with highly restrictive laws
o Abortion still illegal in 32 countries, prohibited under any circumstances in
3% of all countries
• Barriers to safe abortions
o Not just legal issue, also an access issue
▪ Urban vs. rural, 70% of women in India live in rural communities
o Knowledge and awareness
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