Women should not be punished for abortions, Thai court rules

File photo of protesters outside the Constitutional Court campaigning against Article 301 of the Penal Code. Photo: Teirra Yam Kamolvattanavith / Coconuts
File photo of protesters outside the Constitutional Court campaigning against Article 301 of the Penal Code. Photo: Teirra Yam Kamolvattanavith / Coconuts

A court ruled Wednesday that the nation’s abortion laws must be further decriminalized by removing penalties against women who terminate their pregnancies.

The Constitutional Court ruled in a split decision that several articles of the Criminal Code related to abortion were “unconstitutional” because they infringed upon women’s rights to life and liberty.

Those sections of the law include Article 301, which punishes women who obtain or induce their own abortions with up to three years in prison and a THB6,000 (US$185) fine. The court gave 360 days for the law to be amended.

Few women are prosecuted because broad exceptions in the law effectively make abortion legal. Still, pro-choice activists and academics have campaigned for full decriminalization and called upon society and the law to enable them to end pregnancies legally and safely.

Related:

Thailand’s abortions are modern and safe. They’re also out of reach for most women (Video)

Know Nothing, Say Nothing: What it’s truly like to get an abortion in Thailand

Thai pro-choice medical network campaigns for the right to safe abortions (PHOTOS)

Thailand to relax stance on abortion



Reader Interactions

Leave A Reply


BECOME A COCO+ MEMBER

Support local news and join a community of like-minded
“Coconauts” across Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.

Join Now
Coconuts TV
Our latest and greatest original videos
Subscribe on