Abortions / Cyprus: What is valid and what has changed since 2018

With the reactions in the US to overturn the abortion decision reaching its zenith, the focus is also on Cyprus, what are the rights of women regarding abortions, what is provided by law and what is the number of abortions performed each time.

It should be noted that abortion was considered a criminal offense until 2018, while after a draft law was submitted, the Parliament proceeded to decriminalize abortion. Due to the fact that abortions were performed under an illegal and secret procedure by private doctors, the authorities could not keep records of the abortions.

It is recalled that the issue was brought before the Parliament in 2018 on the occasion of a woman who decided to have an abortion without the knowledge of her partner, with the case, to end up in court, as the father of the child did not know about her decision and when informed complained to that doctor.

SigmaLive contacted the Member of Parliament of the Ecologists' Movement, Alexandra Attalidou, who stated that until today, even after the decriminalization of abortions, there is no updated information before them to discuss the issue in Parliament and to proceed with the analysis of the results. as most other countries do. "There should be data before us, there are not even Eurostat data for Cyprus in order to conduct a similar investigation," said Ms. Attalidou.

In March 2021, the president of the Ecologists' Movement, Charalambos Theopemptou, requested the number of abortions performed through the general health system from the date of inclusion of gynecologists in it, the answer to the question was that from June 2020 to March 2021, Sixty-five abortions were performed at the GESS, with the reasons being health issues.

According to SigmaLive, thousands of abortions are performed in Cyprus every year, and the number is not much lower than the number of births.

Also, according to Mr. Theopemptou, in July 2019, he submitted a bill with the ultimate goal of reducing unwanted pregnancies, which are a scourge in Cyprus, the MP of Ecologists Charalambos Theopeptou submits today. The president of the Ecologists also raised the firm position of the Church against abortions, which is a timeless obstacle to any development of the issue.

What about abortions in Cyprus?

According to the legislation in Cyprus, termination of pregnancy is allowed if 12 weeks of pregnancy have not been completed and if the pregnancy is the result of rape, sexual abuse of an adult or minor or sexual abuse of a woman with mental disability or incest and if they are 19 and pregnant declare before the doctor that the pregnancy is the result of rape, sexual abuse or incest

It is understood that, in case the pregnant woman is a minor, the above statement is also signed by one of the parents or the one who has custody of the minor. Also, in case the pregnant woman is a woman with a mental disability, instead of the pregnant woman, the above statement is signed only by one of the parents or the one who has custody of the person of the woman with a mental disability.

After consulting a competent doctor according to which there are signs of fetal abnormality that lead to the birth of a newborn with pathological problems and after consulting a competent doctor that there is an unavoidable risk to the life of the pregnant woman or risk of serious physical or mental health damage.

If in the above cases the pregnant woman is a minor or a woman with a mental disability, the consent of one of the parents or the person in charge of the person of the minor or the woman with a mental disability is also required.

It is important to mention that Cyprus was one of the first countries to allow abortions after the Turkish invasion in 1974, because there were so many incidents that there was tacit tolerance and girls were allowed to have abortions en masse.

sigmalive.com