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Sexual reproduction

A group of women's rights activists with a sign reading "Abortion Without Borders" protesting Poland's strict anti-abortion law, outside the top constitutional court, in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022.

Poland’s ‘pregnancy registry’ will further restrict abortion access, activists say

Abortion

The Polish government says it is establishing a national medical database, following a directive from the EU Commission, promising to ensure the protection of people’s privacy. But in a country with a near-total abortion ban, rights activists are not so convinced.

In this photo taken Wednesday, April 13, 2011, a graffiti against revealing the gender of unborn fetuses stands outside a clinic in Morena in the Central Indian State of Madhya Pradesh. 

India’s abortion law still lacks a rights-based approach, gynecologist says

Abortion
Protesters gather outside Poland's Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw, Poland, on Nov.6, 2021, to protest against the restrictive abortion laws after a woman died of complications during her pregnancy. 

This Polish activist sent abortion pills to a woman in need. Now she’s on trial.

Abortion
A one-month dosage of hormonal birth control pills is displayed. Early-stage abortions are legal in Thailand, but many doctors and nurses there refuse to do them.

In Thailand, new abortion freedoms face spiritual resistance

Sacred Nation
Doctors for Choice in Malta gather to advocate for a bill to decriminalize abortion in Malta.

Abortion is illegal in Malta. Activists are trying to increase access.

Reproductive rights
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Crosses bearing tags with names are seen in a graveyard of the Flaminio Cemetery, in Rome, Italy, Oct. 16, 2020.

In Italy, religious organizations’ ‘fetus graves’ reignite abortion debate

Reproductive rights

Catholic and conservative groups are slowly chipping away at abortion rights in Italy, where abortion has been legal since 1978.

Sevilay, a mother of two in Istanbul, got permission from her husband to have an abortion as required by law. But she had trouble finding a public hospital that would do it, and even some of her friends criticize her for her decision.

Abortion increasingly hard to access in Turkey

Reproductive rights

Abortion has been legal in Turkey since 1983, but the ruling AK Party and president have been chipping away at access to the procedure over the past decade.

Women with green bandanas protest in a crowd

Abortions rise worldwide when US cuts funding to women’s health clinics, study finds

Health & Medicine

The “global gag rule” has been rescinded by every Democrat and reinstated by every Republican to occupy the Oval Office, reflecting the partisan nature of abortion. But studies show the rule may actually lead to increased abortions abroad.

A woman wearing a yellow shirt holds a toddler in her arms near a mural.

Activists in Kenya challenge abortion ban in court

Kenyan authorities directed Marie Stopes health clinics to suspend abortion services, claiming their ads promoted abortion. If the move holds, thousands of women will have no choice but to use backstreet clinics, putting their lives at risk.

Three women stand in a line with their hands on their visibly pregnant stomachs. Their faces are cropped out of the image.

Once the go-to place for surrogacy, India tightens control over its baby industry

A new bill seeks to limit surrogacy to altruistic surrogates only, killing a business that injects $400 billion into the Indian economy every year.

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