Mexico’s Supreme Court Has Voted To Decriminalize Abortion

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Activists supporting the decriminalization of abortion in Mexico march in Guadalajara, Mexico, on September 28, 2019. Mexico’s Supreme Court has ruled that it is unconstitutional to punish abortion.

Ulises Ruiz/AFP via Getty Images

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Ulises Ruiz/AFP via Getty Images

Activists supporting the decriminalization of abortion in Mexico march in Guadalajara, Mexico, on September 28, 2019. Mexico’s Supreme Court has ruled that it is unconstitutional to punish abortion.

Ulises Ruiz/AFP via Getty Images

Mexico’s Supreme Court has ruled that it is unconstitutional to punish abortion as a crime, a landmark ruling that clears the way for the legalization of abortion across the country.

The court took up the issue on Monday when eight of 11 justices voted to revoke a law in the state of Coahuila that punished women with up to three years in prison for having an abortion, even in cases of rape. The other three justices joined in the decision on Tuesday, declaring such laws unconstitutional.

«Today is a historic day for the rights of all Mexican women, said Supreme Court Chief Justice Arturo Zaldivar on Tuesday.

«It is a watershed in the history of the rights of all women, especially the most vulnerable, he added.

The ruling sets a precedent that would force judges across Mexico to hand down similar rulings and expands early abortion for millions of women in Mexico’s 32 states.