It is almost 20 years since the United Nations held its ground breaking International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo. The ICPD conference often dubbed the “Cairo Consensus” presented a political victory for women. Cairo touched on many sensitive issues often highlighting the will of some to control the lives and values of others. It made significant advances in the formulation of reproductive policies and programs towards strengthening the rights of women. The ICPD became the first international conference explicitly to recognize reproductive rights as human rights. The needs and rights of the individual having control over their sexuality and fertility were emphasized, people were also allowed to choose how to live their lives and that freedom was to be extended to apply to women in that their lives must no longer be governed by men. Since then a number of International and regional initiatives have taken up this call amongst them the Maputo Plan of Action 2006, which commits member countries to an action plan of which unsafe abortion is one of the nine key areas.
Family planning programs occupy an unusual place in the public policy arena. They are widespread and are also generally considered effective public health policies. Yet family planning programs are persistently controversial. In part because they center on birth control, reduction of unwanted pregnancies through safe abortion by strengthening family planning programs, a sensitive subject that has drawn criticism from a wide range of perspectives, religious, political, ideological and Scientific. However, while many may pretend or out rightly deny to have ever carried out abortion, many have participated in carrying out back street abortion and many have done it more than once, using it as a vital reproductive health option. The decriminalization of abortion in South Africa for instance gave rise to cross border abortion operation thus saving many women from unwanted pregnancies. Both female and male have jointly participated in the abortion practice with the male counterpart playing a significant role in abortion as instigators, facilitators, advisors, informers, supporters, or even punishment givers.
Abortion has become an ever more controversial issue provoking strong reactions both for and against. The very language that is used to frame disputes over whether or not women should have access to safe and legal abortion indicates just how polarized debates have become. Many women die every year because they are unable to access safe abortion and protecting themselves from HIV infection. Access to safe abortion is a matter of human rights, democracy and public health and the denial of such access is a major cause of death. Whilst there has been legislative advances made by a number of countries particularly geared to reducing un-safe abortion, Botswana is still lacking behind. For, example, when Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Hon Botlhogile Tshireletso, called for the decriminalization of abortion in the country many people were in disagreement and saw that as very irresponsible suggestion coming from a minister.
Tshireletso had decried about the increase in the number of abortions in the country and also stated that women in Botswana were forced to conduct illegal backstreet abortion as the operation was forbidden by law. South Africa enacted the legislation in 1997 allowing the termination of pregnancy on a wide range of grounds. With more than 20 African countries having ratified protocol on the Rights of women in Africa authorizing abortion cases of rape, incest and maternal health and growing number of African leaders speaking out on the need to safe abortion, positive change seems to be afoot in some parts of Africa but remains a great challenge in Botswana which is also yet to ratify the SADC Gender Protocol.
Women continue to encounter many challenges; safe abortion, voluntary sterilization or emergency contraception are often prohibited or difficult to access, they lack financial resources to pay for reproductive health services or the transport to get them. The illusion that their poor economic and reproductive behavior is the source of most of their misery, and that capitalism and private resource ownership is their only source of hope, will continue to be propagated.
Those promoting women’s rights are often frustrated by how reproductive rights are swept aside to accommodate religious, cultural traditions and the prevailing dynamics, such as in instances where they shift the blame to the woman’s family or parents. In this scenario it is claimed that the girl child is used as a form of commodity that is exchanged for monetary gain and wealth accumulation and sometimes rushing them into marriage to men who just don’t love them. The families use their daughter (s) as honey pots and in worst case scenario (s) auction or sell them to mere spazas, every Dick and Tom. However, on the contrary, it has also been stated that not only are women abused, but men are too. Some people even claim that women can marry just in a period of year and there after connive with their respective small houses to murder or kill their husbands so that they can inherit their estate and in a small space of time become instant millionaires.
I wish to conclude by stating that whether or not abortion is permitted or prohibited by law, women will seek abortion services and obtain abortion. They will seek them because of their social, economic, health or other personal circumstances. If safe services are not available, they will turn to unsafe ones. For the poorest women and for the young women with no money and no access to information about what services might be available the only option is self abortion despite the risks it involves. There is need for policy reform by putting abortion debate in the policy agenda in the country. Advocates of abortion such as Mogae and Tshireletso must also ensure that there is continuity and not make once off proposals in their calls for decriminalization of abortion.
Thabo Lucas Seleke is a Researcher in Health Policy & Health Systems Strengthening
