Supreme Court of Nepal Decision: Lakshmi v. Government of Nepal
In a landmark decision issued on May 20, 2009, Nepal’s Supreme Court directed the government – specifically the Office of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, the Ministry of Health and Population, the Ministry of Law, Justice, and Constituent Assembly Affairs, and the Ministry of Women, Children, and Social Welfare – to enact a comprehensive law and to take several necessary measures to guarantee women’s right to safe abortion services.
The case Lakshmi v. Nepal was filed in Nepal’s Supreme Court on February 22, 2007 as a public interest lawsuit brought by the Forum for Women, Law and Development (FWLD), Pro-Public and a group of human rights lawyers. The Center for Reproductive Rights provided support in developing the case and drafting the petition, and subsequently submitted a memo to Nepal’s Supreme Court. The full decision is only available in Nepali language. The main aim of the publication is to disseminate the decision to international communities and courts for their references.
Read the decision in Lakshmi v. Nepal.
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