Baird Barbara
Associate Professor of Women's Studies in the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.
Health Hum Rights. 2017 Jun;19(1):197-208.
This article considers the relationship between the decriminalization of abortion and women's access to abortion services. It focuses on the four Australian jurisdictions which are, with Canada, the only jurisdictions in the world where abortion has been removed from the criminal law. This paper draws on documentary evidence and an oral history project to give a "before and after" account of each jurisdiction. The paper assumes that the meaning and impact of decriminalization must be assessed in each local context. Understanding the conditions that shape access must incorporate analysis of the broader social, political and economic environment as well as the law. The article finds that decriminalization does not necessarily deliver any improvement in women's access to abortion, at least in the short term. Further, it is not inconsistent with the neoliberal policy environment that characterizes the provision of abortion care in Australia, where most abortions are provided through the private sector at financial cost to women. If all women are to enjoy their human rights to full reproductive health care, the public health system must take responsibility for the adequate provision of abortion services; ongoing and vigilant activism is central if this is to be achieved.
本文探讨了堕胎合法化与女性获得堕胎服务之间的关系。它聚焦于澳大利亚的四个司法管辖区，这些辖区与加拿大一样，是世界上仅有的将堕胎从刑法中剔除的司法管辖区。本文利用文献证据和一个口述历史项目，对每个司法管辖区进行了“前后”对比描述。本文认为，必须在每个当地背景下评估堕胎合法化的意义和影响。理解影响获得堕胎服务的条件，必须结合对更广泛的社会、政治和经济环境以及法律的分析。文章发现，至少在短期内，堕胎合法化不一定会使女性获得堕胎服务的情况得到任何改善。此外，这与澳大利亚堕胎护理提供所具有的新自由主义政策环境并不矛盾，在澳大利亚，大多数堕胎是通过私营部门提供的，女性需为此支付费用。如果所有女性都要享有充分生殖健康护理的人权，公共卫生系统必须负责提供足够的堕胎服务；若要实现这一点，持续且警惕的行动主义至关重要。
