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Abortion ban closer in Nicaragua

From an article of the same title on BBCNews.com:

A Nicaraguan parliamentary committee has approved draft legislation to ban all abortions, including in cases where the mother's life is at risk. The legislation will now be debated at a national assembly hearing before a final vote next week. If the law is passed, doctors carrying out abortions could face up to 30 years in prison. At present, abortion is only permitted in Nicaragua in instances where the life of the mother is in danger. The call for a complete ban has mainly come from the Roman Catholic and evangelical churches. The bill - which is widely expected to be approved - has come amid campaigning for the country's presidential election in November.

From an article titled "Nicaragua Passes Total Ban on Abortion" by Marc Lacey in the NY Times:

Nicaragua's legislature on Thursday banned all abortions, eliminating exceptions for rape and when the life of the mother is threatened. The measure, expected to be approved by President Enrique Bolaños, was voted in 52 to 0, with 9 abstentions and 29 representatives not showing up to vote. Nicaragua joins El Salvador and Chile as the only countries in the Western hemisphere to ban abortion without exception. But across Latin America, abortion is outlawed except in rare circumstances. It is readily available only in Cuba and a few English-speaking Caribbean countries... Health officials estimate that 32,000 illegal abortions are performed every year in Nicaragua, most of them unsafe. Advocates of the ban hope to reduce that number by making doctors and patients think about the consequences. Opponents of the law maintain that prohibiting the ending of problematic pregnancies will only lead to more clandestine abortions. Nicaragua now allows abortions if three doctors agree that the mother's life would be in danger. This amounted to a total of six legal abortions in 2002, the last year for which data is available. Health officials say that the number has remained in the single digits since. Illegal abortions can be punished with jail terms of up to six years for the woman and the doctor. Lawmakers put off discussion of sentences under the new law, though far stricter terms are expected to be added.

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