"Fetus is Life" vs "Respect for Women's Self-Determination" Controversy Over the Failure of Full Abolition of Abortion Law

Government Announces Legislation Allowing Abortion Up to 14 Weeks of Pregnancy
Women's Groups Ignite Calls for Complete Abolition of Abortion Law

On the morning of the 24th, members of the university student union club 'Moduui Feminism' held a press conference in front of the Government Seoul Office, urging the complete abolition of the abortion law. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy reporters Han Seung-gon and Kim Seul-gi] As the government announced its plan to issue a legislative notice for a bill that maintains the current abortion law but allows women to terminate pregnancies up to 14 weeks, backlash has arisen from women's groups that have been demanding the complete abolition of the abortion law.

On the 7th, the government will issue a legislative notice for amendments to the Criminal Act and the Maternal and Child Health Act concerning abortion. This amendment is a follow-up measure to the Constitutional Court's decision last April, which ruled that the criminalization of abortion in the early stages of pregnancy under the Criminal Act excessively infringes on women's right to self-determination and declared the relevant legal provisions unconstitutional, ordering revisions by the end of this year.

At that time, the Constitutional Court expressed the opinion that women's right to self-determination regarding pregnancy and childbirth must be guaranteed until around 22 weeks of pregnancy, the point at which the fetus can survive independently outside the mother's body.

Accordingly, the legislative notice includes provisions allowing abortion up to 14 weeks while maintaining the current abortion law. Additionally, it adds conditions permitting abortion up to 24 weeks in cases involving specific reasons such as sexual crimes during the mid-pregnancy period.

However, this decision conflicts with the stance of women's organizations calling for the complete abolition of the abortion law and the Ministry of Justice advisory body, the Yangyang Gender Equality Policy Committee, which recommended decriminalizing abortion, thus sparking anticipated controversy.

Earlier, on the 28th, the women's group "Joint Action for the Abolition of Abortion Law for All" (Monakpae) criticized the legislative direction allowing abortion only up to certain gestational weeks as "a historic regression that once again shifts responsibility onto women through punishment despite the Constitutional Court's decision of unconstitutionality on the abortion law."

Also, in August, the Committee recommended abolishing the abortion law altogether rather than permitting abortion based on gestational weeks, emphasizing the need to guarantee women's right to self-determination regarding pregnancy and childbirth.

The Committee stressed, "The abolition of the abortion law is a global trend. It is necessary to guarantee women's rights to healthy and safe pregnancy, pregnancy termination, and childbirth, thereby creating conditions for fetuses to be born and grow up healthy and safe."

They further explained, "Each person has different physical conditions and circumstances, and many cannot accurately recognize or confirm the exact gestational age. Setting a fixed gestational week and differentiating punishment violates the clarity required for criminal penalties," adding, "In many advanced countries, distinguishing gestational weeks is not a criterion for punishment but a standard for providing appropriate social services according to the gestational period."

In this regard, according to the National Assembly's "People's Consent Petition" on the same day, a petition titled "Complete Abolition of the Abortion Law and Guarantee of Women's Reproductive Rights" was posted.

The petitioner stated, "The Constitutional Court ruled the abortion law unconstitutional and set December 31, 2020, as the deadline for legal revision, but the government is only engaging in meaningless discussions about gestational weeks," adding, "The abortion law threatens not only women's bodily sovereignty but also their health rights and economically oppresses women. The National Assembly must completely abolish the abortion law without gestational limits and establish a fundamental legal framework to guarantee women's reproductive rights."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.