Updated April 2018

Is abortion a human rights issue?

States’ obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights includes areas of sexual and reproductive health and autonomy. Where access to safe and legal abortion services are unreasonably restricted, a number of human rights may be at risk. These include:

What is Human Rights Watch’s position on abortion?

Complications from abortion are rare when performed by a skilled health care provider in sanitary conditions, but unsafe abortions pose a high risk of complications. A 2018 global report on abortion found that 25 million unsafe abortions are performed every year, virtually all (97 percent) in developing countries, and many women and girls die of complications. It found that between 8 to 11 percent of maternal deaths around the world relate to abortion, resulting in 22,800 – 31,000 preventable deaths each year.

Nearly all deaths and morbidity from unsafe abortion occur in countries where abortion is severely restricted. Lack of legal access to abortion often leads women to seek abortion services from unskilled providers or under unhygienic conditions, exposing them to a significant risk of death or injury.

According to the WHO and other sources, complications from unsafe abortion include incomplete abortion, hemorrhage, vaginal, cervical and uterine injury, and infections. Unavailability of safe abortion also poses risks to mental health, including severe anguish and risk of suicide.

What are the health consequences of unsafe abortions?

Complications from abortion are rare when performed by a skilled health care provider in sanitary conditions, but unsafe abortions pose a high risk of complications. A 2018 global report on abortion found that 25 million unsafe abortions are performed every year, virtually all (97 percent) in developing countries, and many women and girls die of complications. It found that between 8 to 11 percent of maternal deaths around the world relate to abortion, resulting in 22,800 – 31,000 preventable deaths each year.

Nearly all deaths and morbidity from unsafe abortion occur in countries where abortion is severely restricted. Lack of legal access to abortion often leads women to seek abortion services from unskilled providers or under unhygienic conditions, exposing them to a significant risk of death or injury.

According to the WHO and other sources, complications from unsafe abortion include incomplete abortion, hemorrhage, vaginal, cervical and uterine injury, and infections. Unavailability of safe abortion also poses risks to mental health, including severe anguish and risk of suicide.

Do restrictive abortion policies reduce the rate of unsafe abortions?

No, in fact restrictive abortion policies are associated with higher rates of unsafe abortions. According to a 2014 UN report, “The average unsafe abortion rate was more than four times greater in countries with restrictive abortion policies in 2011 (26.7 unsafe abortions per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44 years) than in countries with liberal abortion policies (6.1 unsafe abortions per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44 years).” The WHO has found that removing restrictions reduces maternal mortality from unsafe abortion.

What have UN experts and agencies said about criminalization of abortion?

UN experts and agencies consistently call for the full realization of sexual and reproductive rights, including access to safe, legal abortion. This includes the UN “treaty bodies,” which are expert groups that monitor states’ compliance with international human rights treaties. For example:

The CEDAW Committee, which monitors compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), said in a 2014 statement: “Unsafe abortion is a leading cause of maternal mortality and morbidity. As such, States parties should legalize abortion at least in cases of rape, incest, threats to the life and/or health of the mother, or severe foetal impairment, as well as provide women with access to quality post-abortion care, especially in cases of complications resulting from unsafe abortions. States parties should also remove punitive measures for women who undergo abortion.” It has made similar recommendations to many governments when it reviews their compliance with the treaty. The recommendations made in these “concluding observations” typically call on governments to legalize abortion in the circumstances noted above, decriminalize in all cases, and guarantee access.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child has urged governments to decriminalize abortions in all circumstances, and remove barriers to access.

circumstances, and remove barriers to access. The UN Human Rights Committee, the Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights, and the Committee against Torture, have also called removal of penalties for abortion and for measures to ensure safe, legal access to abortion.

UN special rapporteurs focusing on a variety of human rights issues, as well as the UN working group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice, have called for decriminalization of and access to abortion services.