Mexico's Supreme Court shuts down federal ban on abortion despite it still being penalized in 20 states

Mexico's Supreme Court struck down a federal ban on abortion Wednesday, indicating the procedure can no longer be penalized because it is unconstitutional and violates the rights of women.

Under the unanimous decision filed by 11 judges, the federal public health service and all federal health institutions are obligated to provide abortion access to any person who seeks it.

The ruling was one that the Information Group for Chosen Reproduction, or GIRE as it is known by its Spanish initial, and other human rights groups had been championing.

'No woman or pregnant person, nor any health worker, will be able to be punished for abortion,' the non-profit organization said in a statement.

The decision comes two years after the Supreme Court ruled in a case involving the northeastern state of Coahuila and said that a woman could not be jailed for having an abortion.

Hundreds of women protest with songs and posters during a protest in the state of Colima on September 28, 2019 to ask the Mexican government for the decriminalization of abortion. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court voted anonymously to remove a federal ban on abortions

Demonstrators hold a banner that reads, 'Abortion yes. Abortion no. I  decided that,' during a march on September 28, 2020 in Queretaro, Mexico

Members of the 'Black Block' lay a banner in favor of legal abortion during a pro-choice rights demonstration on September 27, 2020 in Mexico City. On Wednesday, Mexico's Supreme Court unanimously voted to remove the federal ban on the procedure

Women take part in a demonstration, demanding the legalization of abortion in the framework of the International Safe Abortion Day in Mexico City, Mexico, on September 28, 2020

Abortion in Mexico was made illegal in 1931 and was only allowed if the pregnant mother's life was in danger or if the pregnancy was the product of rape.

Women are allowed to undergo abortions during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy in states of Oaxaca, Hidalgo, Veracruz, Coahuila, Colima, Sinaloa, Baja California, Baja California Sur Guerrero, Quintana Roo and Aguascalientes. The procedure is also permitted in the capital, Mexico City.

Still, 20 of Mexico's 32 states still criminalize it. Although regional judges in those states will have to abide by the Supreme Court abortion ruling, there is still a long road ahead to drop all penalties.

The historic ruling was celebrated across Mexico on social media.

'Today is a day of victory and justice for Mexican women!' Mexico´s National Institute for Women wrote in a message on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. The government organization called the decision a 'big step' toward gender equality.

Senator Olga Sánchez Cordero, a former Supreme Court justice, also went on X and called the ruling a step in 'a more just society in which the rights of all are respected.' She also called on Mexico´s Congress to pass legislation in response.

Pro-life supporters slammed the historic ruling in a country where Roman Catholicism - which forbids abortion - is practiced by at least 80 percent of the population.

Irma Barrientos, director of the Civil Association for the Rights of the Conceived, vowed that abortion opponents will continue to press forward with plans to block its access.

'We´re not going to stop,' Barrientos said. 'Let´s remember what happened in the United States. After 40 years, the Supreme Court reversed its abortion decision, and we´re not going to stop until Mexico guarantees the right to life from the moment of conception.'

A banner reading, 'Abortion Out of the Penal Code,' hangs from a building during International Women's Day at the Zocalo Square in Mexico City on March 8.  The Mexican Supreme Court unanimously voted Wednesday to remove the federal ban on the procedure

A woman holds up a sign that reads, 'In Mexico, we women decide', during a rally in favor of decriminalization of abortion on the International Safe Abortion Day on September 28, 2020 in Querétaro, Mexico

Women take part in a protest in support of safe and legal abortion access to mark International Safe Abortion Day in Mexico City on September 28, 2022

Presidential hopeful Mexico City mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, who is running under the ruling Morena party ticket, and opposition candidate Xóchitl Gálvez, have yet to comment on the decision.

Mexico becomes the latest country in Latin America to move towards legalizing abortion.

Argentina legalized abortion in 2020, and Colombia did so in 2022.

The ruling still does not allow women in every Mexican state to access abortions right away, according to Fernanda Díaz de León, sub-director and legal expert for women´s rights group IPAS.

It does force federal agencies to provide the care to patients. That will likely to have a cascade of effects.

Díaz de León said removing the federal ban takes away another excuse used by care providers to deny abortions in states where the procedure is no longer a crime.

It also allows women with formal employment who are part of the social security system and government employees to seek the procedure in federal institutions in states where the abortion is still criminalized, she said.

Díaz de León and officials at other feminist organizations worry that women, particularly in more conservative areas, may still be denied abortions.

'It's a very important step,' Díaz de León said. But 'we need to wait to see how this is going to be applied and how far it reaches.'