Argentina’s Senate has rejected a bill that would legalize abortion up to 14 weeks.
The bill, rejected 38 to 31 early Thursday morning, would have undone current restrictions on abortion that allow it only in cases of rape, incest, or when a woman’s pregnancy threatens her life. Argentina President Mauricio Macri had said he would sign the legislation, though he is a conservative and personally opposes abortion.
Argentina, a predominantly Catholic nation that is the homeland of Pope Francis, would have become the most populous country in Latin America to legalize abortion. Uruguay, Cuba, and Guyana also allow abortion, and in Mexico, legalization varies by state.
Argentina’s House approved the bill roughly two months ago by a slim majority, following pressure from feminist advocates. Francis did not directly address the legislation after it passed, but he spoke about the issue a day later, comparing having an abortion after learning of birth defects to Nazi eugenics.
Women who try to have an abortion can be charged with a crime or put in jail under the current law, though enforcement is rare.
Adolfo Rubinstein, Argentina’s health minister, has estimated there are more than 350,000 illegal abortions every year, and up to 60,000 women are hospitalized due to complications.
Under the bill, women would have been allowed to obtain an abortion after 14 weeks under certain restrictions, including if a fetus wouldn’t survive after birth, if a woman’s pregnancy threatened her life or health, or if she got pregnant as a result of rape.
