African leader discusses reproductive rights on her continent
The global dispute over abortion has been heavily influenced by organizations in America
(Evelyne Opondo)
Both this week and next, I intend to look at abortion rights on a global scale. I have interviews set up with an abortion provider and feminist leader in England as its Parliament considers reforming the laws. But today, I will examine the situation in Africa.
Evelyne Opondo, Africa Director at the International Center for Research on Women, took some time to speak to me. We discussed how the continent had historically treated abortion access, the challenges women face in getting needed care, and how the American antiabortion movement has funded efforts to curb reproductive freedoms throughout the developed and developing worlds.
“Unsafe abortion remains a major problem in Africa,” Opondo said. “Because there are still many women and girls that are dying from abortion. However, over the last few years, we have seen some progress in terms of legislation and in terms of policy changes in a number of countries.”
Many of the unsafe abortions are self-induced. They can use toxic medications or use dangerous instruments to cause one. The majority of those who perish are adolescents, as well as those from poorer communities.
Opondo said it is difficult to pinpoint which country was the most plagued by the problem. But generally speaking, those with restrictive laws suffer more.
“But some of the challenges with countries like South Africa is the lack of implementation,” Opondo said, “because these laws are not automatically implemented just by virtue of being adopted. So you will find that sometimes laws are adopted, but then governments are not investing in implementing those laws. And so women are not able to then benefit from those services.”
Africa’s abortion laws came with colonization. England established its abortion law in 1861 when it made it illegal to end a pregnancy at any point for both the woman involved and the person who provided it. In pre-colonial times in Africa, abortion was treated as a private matter. In parts of Africa that the French colonized, their laws are more reminiscent of what came from that legal tradition.
“It's more recently that countries are starting to change their laws now to speak more to their contexts,” Opondo said.
Things changed with the Maputo Protocol, a human rights instrument established by the African Union. For the first time, it expressed abortion as a right.
“That provided that provided impetus for discussions around abortion,” Opondo said.
Much of the funding for antiabortion advocacy comes from groups located in the United States. I also heard this from Klementyna Suchanow, a leader of Poland’s movement for reproductive rights. The same thing was echoed by the people I’ve corresponded with in England. Reproductive justice organizations in America must look at the cause globally since that’s how the opposition does it.
Opondo’s organization and others have pushed the discourse in a direction that has advanced reproductive freedom.
“Over the last say 10 or so years, we have seen more acceptance of abortion,” Opondo said. “And I would also say that the youth, the young people, the young activists are really organizing and pushing the boundaries.”