Historic Decision: Mexico’s Supreme Court Decriminalizes Abortion
September 7, 2023 – The green wave in Latin America has reached a new milestone: in a historic decision, Mexico’s Supreme Court of Justice (SCJN) decriminalized abortion on the federal level, establishing that criminalization in the Federal Penal Code is a violation of the human rights of women and transgender and non-binary people.
The ruling affirms that federal authorities cannot criminalize any woman, transgender person, or non-binary person seeking abortion services at federal healthcare institutions anywhere in Mexico. The ruling also affirms that healthcare personnel cannot be prosecuted for providing abortion services.
The Court instructed federal healthcare institutions, such as the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) and the Institute of Social Security and Services for State Workers (ISSSTE), among others, to ensure access to abortion services for all women and transgender and non-binary people.
According to the Court’s reasoning, “the criminalization of abortion constitutes an act of violence and discrimination based on gender, as it perpetuates the stereotype that women and pregnant individuals can only exercise their sexuality for procreation and reinforces the gender role that imposes motherhood as a compulsory destiny.”
This verdict was the result of a national legal strategy that included the filing of nationwide constitutional actions (known as “amparos”) in Mexico. This strategy was led by GIRE, a partner organization of the Center for Reproductive Rights, in coordination with numerous local Mexican organizations. One of these actions achieved the decriminalization of abortion in the state of Aguascalientes on August 30, 2023.
The Center for Reproductive Rights, as an organization committed to the promotion and protection of human rights, celebrates the collaborative efforts that made this new decision possible. We have confidence that Mexico’s Federal Congress will soon comply with the Court’s orders to repeal the abortion penal code before the current legislative term ends and that judicial authorities will comply with the instruction not to prosecute women or individuals capable of gestation seeking abortion care in Mexico.
Mexico, like Colombia and Argentina, is moving towards greater protections for reproductive rights in line with the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO). The global public health agency recommends the complete decriminalization of abortion and the assurance that this service is accessible for women, girls, and trans and non-binary people.
“With this milestone in Mexico, Latin America solidifies its position as the leading region in guaranteeing reproductive rights—a global benchmark. This progress joins the recent ruling of the Colombian Constitutional Court, which decriminalized abortion up to week 24 and was achieved through the Causa Justa movement,” said Carmen Cecilia Martinez, Associate Director of Legal Strategies for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Center.
With these victories, it is clear that the green wave continues to grow and expand in Latin America, achieving greater protections for all women, transgender, and non-binary individuals in the region. The green wave will keep rising!
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