The Spanish government said it wants to end a legal ban on
abortion, a move which will generate controversy in the mainly
Roman Catholic country despite the fact that loopholes make it
relatively easy in practice to obtain a termination.
The Socialist government's bill, to be sent to Congress where it
will face resistance from the conservative opposition, will allow
abortion in most cases up until the 14th week of gestation.
The government argues that the women are being unfairly stigmatised
by current laws, under which abortion is a crime.
"The bill looks to preserve the dignity of women, that is its
spirit from beginning to end," Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa
Fernandez de la Vega said at the government's weekly press
conference.
Women can get abortions in Spain if they argue that to go ahead
with the pregnancy would cause them psychological damage, and
prosecutions are almost unheard of.
One aspect of the bill which will generate debate is its proposal
to allow girls to obtain abortions without parental consent from
the age of 16.
European Commission statistics show that in 2004 abortion was
relatively more common in Spain than in Germany, where laws are
more liberal.
But the bill has already generated fierce resistance from the
Catholic Church, which has organised a poster campaign arguing that
unborn babies will be defenceless while animals such as the
endangered Iberian lynx are protected by law.
"The worst for us is that they speak of abortion as a right,"
Alicia Latorre, chairman of the Spanish Federation of Pro Life
Associations, said.
"We will do all we can to stop this law going through."
