Samstag, 20.01.2018 / 16:03 Uhr

Abtreibungen im Nahen Osten

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Aus dem Netz

Middle East Eye stellt die Organisation Women on Web vor, die Frauen in arabischen Ländern, wo dies in der Regel illegal ist, bei Abtreibungen hilft:

Set up by Dutch doctor Rebecca Gomperts in 2005, it helps around 60,000 women every year, according to its founder, by providing advice on how to get specific World Health Organisation-approved pills that safely terminate a pregnancy, as well as general sexual health advise.

 Women on Web assists provide advice on where to buy specific World Health Organisation-approved pills that safely induce abortion (Facebook/Ijhad)

When necessary, it arranges to send the abortion pills by post for a small fee, which is waived in desperate circumstances.

Although the drugs are sometimes seized by customs officials, most of the time the system works well, with the notable exception of Brazil, where packages almost never get through.

Nearly two-thirds of the world's countries ban or severely restrict abortions, including the entire Arab world with the exception of Tunisia. This is due to various cultural, religious and social reasons. 

The emails Saadi receives every day testify to the difficult situations women are placed in by the lack of access to safe and legal abortions.

"Really I need your help," writes one woman from Sudan. "I am a poor women [and] I have 2 children but have no job. So now I got pregnant. Really I hate myself. I am thinking to end my life [just] to get [some] rest. I can't get more responsibility and get [a] new baby. Plz help me. Really I am in [a] bad, bad situation."

Some women are even at risk of losing their lives. (...)

Although Women on Web is blocked in many countries such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia due to the fact that it provides an illegal service, the website provides numerous workarounds to allow people to still get in contact with them.

They have also set up an Arabic-language Facebook page called Ijhad (which means abortion in Arabic) where women can get information via Messenger, an alternative option which is more accessible, particularly for those without an email address. They also have an app on Google Play.

Half of the challenge is breaking through the silence around the issue, which is heavily taboo in the Arab world.

"I wish that Arabic countries and media would talk more about a woman's right to get this service," says Saadi. "It is taking place in these countries anyway, but under the table. In Arabic countries we have two lives, one in public and another one [in] private. No one can say what they want."

An Egyptian woman who successfully used abortion drugs based on the organisation’s recommendation writes: "I'm single. In most Muslim countries, if a single girl gets pregnant, it's a big shame for her and her family.”

"I was very happy that [the] medicine worked. If not, I could face a big problem searching [for] other ways."