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(CNN)Thousands marched for termination rights crossed Latin America connected Tuesday, holding placards and banners that work "It is my close to decide" and "legal termination for wellness and life," arsenic they demanded reproductive freedoms successful a portion known for immoderate of the world's strictest anti-abortion laws.
Several Latin American nations inactive prohibition abortion, including El Salvador, which has sentenced immoderate women to up to 40 years successful prison. In a fig of high-profile cases, women person been convicted and imprisoned after suffering miscarriages and stillbirths.
The rallies, held connected International Safe Abortion Day, were aimed astatine pressuring lawmakers to easiness punitive termination laws, with demonstrators taking to the streets successful countries including El Salvador, Chile and Mexico.
In El Salvador -- wherever abortions are amerciable adjacent erstwhile the gestation poses a hazard to the mother, and successful cases of rape and incest -- protesters held signs calling for harmless and escaped ineligible abortions arsenic they made their mode to Congress.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has ruled retired immoderate betterment to termination laws arsenic portion of the arguable law changes planned by his government.
But Morena Herrera, a salient Salvadoran feminist, said that specified a determination did not necessitate law reform, according to Reuters.
"We are asking for minimum measures to adhd to the Penal Code to warrant the beingness and integrity of women," she said.
Reform is happening
Changes to immoderate termination laws are happening successful the mostly Roman Catholic region. Last year, Argentina voted to legalize abortion astatine up to 14 weeks into pregnancy, aft antecedently imposing situation sentences of up to 15 years but successful cases of rape oregon information to the mother's health.
On Tuesday, Chilean lawmakers were 1 measurement person to easing the country's choky restrictions aft the little Chamber of Deputies approved a program to statement a measure expanding termination access, according to an authoritative property release.
The measure proposes decriminalizing termination successful the archetypal 14 weeks of gestation -- a large measurement for 1 of the region's astir blimpish countries.
Chile's strict termination laws forbid termination unless the gestation results from rape, if the fetus has a deadly congenital disability, oregon if a woman's beingness is astatine risk.
The measure present has to beryllium debated by the legislature's Commission for Women and Gender Equity earlier receiving last support by the Chamber of Deputies and passing to the country's Senate to beryllium voted into law.
The Chilean legislative moves travel a landmark ruling earlier this period from Mexico's Supreme Court, which declared that penalizing abortions was unconstitutional. That determination paves the mode for legalizing termination passim Mexico.
On Tuesday, an termination rally successful Mexico City saw clashes betwixt protesters and constabulary officers, injuring 37 people, according to the metropolis government.
The rally, which demanded reproductive rights and was organized by feminist groups, started successful the day from 2 antithetic points and marched to the capital's main square. The protestation was guarded by the city's policewomen.
Mexican authorities placed protective fences astir cardinal buildings and monuments up of the march. The clashes took spot erstwhile immoderate protesters vandalized immoderate structures.
Among the injured were 9 civilians, a nationalist servant and 27 pistillate members of the constabulary force.
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