Recent proposals by authorities to restrict access to abortion have touched a nerve across Russia, which has embraced increasingly conservative values
Despite its last-minute scheduling, the meeting at a bookstore in Russia’s westernmost city of Kaliningrad still drew about 60 people, with many outraged by a lawmaker’s efforts to ban abortions in local private clinics. The weeknight turnout surprised and heartened Dasha Yakovleva, one of the organizers, amid recent crackdowns on political activism under President Vladimir Putin. “Right now, there is no room for political action in Russia.
Over the decades, the number of abortions in Russia fell from 4.1 million in 1990 to 517,000 in 2021. Only in instances of rape is an abortion legally allowed between 12 and 22 weeks. Some regions hold “Days of Silence,” when public clinics don't provide them. Women must wait 48 hours or even a week -– depending on what stage of pregnancy -– between their first appointment and the abortion, in case they reconsider.
The anti-abortion push comes as Russian women appear to be in no rush to have more children amid the war in Ukraine and economic uncertainty. Sales of abortion pills in 2022 were up 60%, according to Nikolay Bespalov, development director of the RNC Pharma analytical company. They fell 35% this year, still higher than pre-2022 levels. Sales of contraceptive medications also have been rising in 2022-23, he said.
Senior lawmaker Pyotr Tolstoy said that by spring, lawmakers would strive to adopt a nationwide ban on abortion in private clinics, where about 20% took place in recent years, according to state statistics. Conservative lawmakers failed to enact such a ban before, but the Health Ministry now says it is ready to consider it.
In seven other regions, the Health Ministry is using another pilot project: having gynecologists try to get women to reconsider having an abortion. A document obtained by AP and cited by other media outlines language doctors are told to use, including saying pregnancy is “a beautiful and natural condition for every woman,” while an abortion is “harmful to your health and a risk of developing complications.
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