Government responses to COVID-19 are hindering the progress of women’s rights, and the UN believes that the pandemic will make it more difficult for women to access proper reproductive healthcare. This is estimated to disproportionately affect vulnerable groups, particularly in Latin America, where access is already restricted.
MILLIONS OF WOMEN IMPACTED BY LACK OF ACCESS TO CARE
In many countries, reproductive health clinics appear to be collateral damage to restructuring for the pandemic response. Further, many people lack the technology to request remote care or are in quarantine with unsupportive or abusive partners or family members, placing potentially vulnerable women at even greater risk. The United Nations Population Fund, an agency aimed at improving reproductive and maternal health worldwide, estimates that an additional 47 million women in 114 low and middle-income countries could lose access to contraception during the course of the pandemic.
Internationally, the Guttmacher Institute, an organisation dedicated to research and education on sexual and reproductive health and rights, has predicted that the pandemic will lead to 15 million unintentional pregnancies, 3 million of which are likely to end in unsafe abortions and in turn approximately 1,000 maternal deaths. The UN argues that Latin America will be amongst the worst hit, as access to abortion and reproductive health services is already limited due in large part to the many conservative governments therein.
LATIN AMERICANS AMONG THE WORST AFFECTED
El Salvador and Colombia have been particularly affected, each facing over 100 clinics closed due to the pandemic. The Collective for the Life and Health of Women, which supports access to legal abortions in Colombia, has documented 30 cases of women experiencing barriers in accessing abortions between March and May 2020. The real number is likely to be much higher, as many go unreported.
Travelling restrictions due to the pandemic are making abortions even more inaccessible. Many clinics offering abortion services are located within cities, but a large proportion of the population remain in rural areas, making it virtually impossible for some women to access necessary healthcare. Johana Cepeda, an activist in Colombia, argued that “if a police officer stops [these women] and asks where they’re going, it’s not easy to say they’re going to get an abortion”. This is unsurprising, given that only 26% of respondents across five Latin American countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Peru) voted that women should have an unrestricted right to abortion. Moreover, activists argue that reproductive health services have been deprioritised, despite their being time-sensitive. Gloria Maira, coordinator for Action for Abortion in Chile, a network of activists campaigning for the right to safe abortions, stated that “the pandemic is providing an excuse to the government, who did not want to guarantee access to abortion”.
ACTIVISTS PLAY VITAL ROLE ENSURING WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE PROTECTED
However, activists have been coming forward in droves to help women safely access abortions and other care. Miles, an organisation in Chile, has been organising transport for women living in cities, where no doctor will approve legal abortions, so that they can reach other health centres. Attempts have been made to expand this network across the whole country, as other local organisations have also been adapting to the pandemic trying to find ways to provide free legal, health, social and psychological support online. In Argentina, Red de Profesionales de la Salud por el Derecho a Decidir, a network of pro-choice health providers, have been posting weekly updates on their website about which reproductive services were still accessible, as many have been closed due to the pandemic. Additionally, since the beginning of Argentinian lockdown [in Spanish], Socorristas en Red, a feminist organisation supporting safe medical abortions, has supported 3,835 people in accessing support for legal abortions, through phone or video consultations.
Activists have been trying their hardest to fill the gaps that the governments have left in providing adequate healthcare, but without real governmental action, many women will be left behind.
Natalya is a third year Law student at the University of Manchester. Her goal after university is to become a solicitor, where she hopes to continue helping to bring human rights issues to light. While at university, she is working with the Innocence Project to appeal miscarriages of justice and will be working with the Legal Advice Centre in the coming year.