Court now following western judicial activism trend to impose abortion liberalization
MEXICO CITY, January 31, 2002 (LSN.ca) – In back to back rulings Tuesday and Wednesday, Mexico’s Supreme Court rejected the challenge by Mexico’s federal government to a Mexico City law allowing abortion in cases of fetal deformity and rape. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court justices voted 7-4 that while fetuses have a constitutional right to life, when “genetic defects are detected that could endanger the infant’s life,” they “absolved and excused” abortions.
On Wednesday the justices did not vote in a large-enough majority to declare the rest of the permissive Mexico City pro-abortion law unconstitutional. In a 6-5 ruling the justices fell short of the eight votes needed to declare a section of Mexico City law which permitted abortion in the case of rape and unauthorized artificial insemination.
In their ruling Tuesday the justices wrote: “We are not authorizing or encouraging abortions. Abortions will continue to be considered a crime; those who commit (abortions) are breaking the law, but they will simply not be punished.”
The controversial Mexico City law is known as the “Robles Law” since it was sponsored by former Mexico City Mayor Rosario Robles of the leftist Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD). The Robles Law was passed in August 2000 allowing exceptions to the laws against abortion in the cases of danger to the health of the woman and fetal deformity, and rape. Further, the law reduced from five to three years the maximum prison sentence for women who obtained illegally obtained abortion on demand.
See the AP coverage: https://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020131/ap_to_po/mexico_abortion_3