Rights group roots for abortion law

The national human rights agency has urged Parliament to pass a law on safe abortion saying it was a fundamental right under the Constitution.

According to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), the move will help implement constitutional provisions relating to the right to reproductive health.

The Constitution prohibits abortion except under specified circumstances.

Section 26(4) says:  “Abortion is not permitted unless, in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law.

The allowed circumstances are what the rights agency considers “safe abortion” buts seeks clarity on what constitutes emergency treatment.

In a move that could re-ignite debate on the emotive subject, the commission argues that every Kenyan has the right to the highest attainable standard of health care services, including reproductive health care.

“Parliament should enact a comprehensive abortion law to determine the circumstances in which and under which conditions the pregnancy of a woman can be terminated,” said an occasional report released by the commission Wednesday in Nairobi.

“Safe abortion is a reproductive rights element of the right to reproductive health.”

Besides, the group wants the  government to provide information,  facilities for procuring legally allowed abortion as well as contraceptives.

“The services must be made available, accessible, affordable and of good quality.”

The commission said violence against women, rape, poor access to reproductive health information and forced early marriages increase the risk of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortion.

It was also argued that the move would reduce the number of women dying due to unsafe abortions.

“Denial of abortion services in circumstances including rape offends the right to be from inhuman and degrading treatment,” said the agency. 

The report explores ways of implementing the Bill of Rights which is celebrated as one of the most progressive in the world.

In addition to abortion, the report  touched on the rights of the disabled, youths and business people.

Abortion was one of the most contentious issues in the run up to the referendum on the new Constitution last year.  The No campaigners, mostly religious leaders, argued that the Constitution gave room for abortion on demands while those supporting the new law said it expressly prohibited the procedure.

According to the agency, the national guidelines on management of rape and sexual violence provided for counselling of victims.

This means that the pregnancy cannot be terminated unless it is demonstrated that it was a danger to the mother’s health.

Some doctors point out that the emergency contraceptive pill  prescribed for rape victims is aimed at ensuring that that sexual violence did not lead to pregnancy.

“Making access to safe abortion an actionable right enables the realisation of other human rights provided for in the Constitution and other international instruments that Kenyan has ratified,”  argues the commission.

Speaking during the launch of the report, Senior Counsel Pheroze Nowrojee advised the commission to ensure the findings are deposited in court.

“The Bill of Rights must  have a meaning in people’s lives,” said Mrs Florence Jaoko, the commission chair.