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Georgetown (Guyana): Difference between revisions
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===Laws & Social Stigmas=== | ===Laws & Social Stigmas=== | ||
In Guyana, abortion is fully legal and available upon request during the first eight weeks of pregnancy. During this time, all reasons for an abortion are legal. Between eight and twelve weeks of pregnancy, an abortion can be performed can be approved by a medical practitioner or a medical assistant in an approved institution. Between the twelfth and sixteenth week of pregnancy, an abortion can be performed at an approved institution if the abortion is approved by two medical practitioners. After sixteen weeks of pregnancy, an abortion can only be performed if three medical practitioners approve of the abortion procedure, and it must be approved on the grounds that the pregnancy either endangers the life of the woman or seriously endangers her life or the child's life. =<ref>[https://www.womenonwaves.org/en/page/4947/abortion-law--guyana Abortion Law: Guyana]</ref> | |||
Before a woman can receive an abortion in Guyana, she must first receive obligatory counseling. There is then a 48-hour wait period before the abortion can be performed. If a woman is considered to be not "of sound mind," she will need approval from her parents, guardian or husband to receive the abortion.<ref>[https://www.womenonwaves.org/en/page/4947/abortion-law--guyana Abortion Law: Guyana]</ref> | |||
The current abortion laws fall under The 1995 Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act. Before this Act was passed in 1995, abortion was illegal in the country, although the government and legal system made no significant efforts to prosecute people who performed or received abortions. There had been a movement to reform abortion laws in Guyana since the early 1970s, but the country faced opposition from pro-life groups and the Catholic Church. When the abortion laws were passed, it was decided to divide the pregnancy into four parts, and separate laws would apply to each of the four stages of the pregnancy.<ref>[http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/abortion/profiles.htm UN Profile: Abortion Laws in Guyana]</ref> | |||
===What to Get & Where to Get It=== | ===What to Get & Where to Get It=== | ||