MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguay votes abortion bill and challenges president

President Vazquez is expected to veto the bill

Uruguay's Senate voted this week to decriminalize abortions during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy but President Tabare Vazquez is expected to veto the measure which will be upheld by the opposition.

The Senate voted 17 to 13 in favour of the bill after the lower house of Congress approved it last week in a tight 49/48 vote. Uruguay's centre-left president, Tabare Vazquez, a doctor by profession and with strong Catholic roots has repeatedly vowed to veto any law easing restrictions on the procedure. Vasquez said last year that he doesn't agree with legalized abortion "neither philosophically nor biologically" and would veto any bill to remove penalties. Congress could override the veto in theory, but support for the bill is not seen as strong enough for that. Furthermore the opposition which voted against the bill can sustain the presidential veto. Under the current law, which dates from 1938, women who abort and the people who assist them face jail terms. Abortion is only permitted in cases of rape or when the life of the woman or the foetus is endangered. A recent survey by private pollster Interconsult showed 57% of Uruguayans supported fewer restrictions on abortion, and 63% were against a presidential veto on the bill. However Church leaders in Uruguay warned that Catholic lawmakers voting for the bill could face excommunication, a statement that sparked criticism from across the political spectrum. Although the practice is banned in Uruguay researches estimate a considerable number are performed each year and recently three Uruguayan doctors were sentenced to prison for performing abortions. Furthermore pro-abortion groups and legislators argue that the current situation only punished the poor because "the rich can always find a way round the law". Most countries in Latin America allow abortion only in cases of rape, when the mother's life is in danger or if the foetus has severe deformities. Only Cuba and Guyana allow abortions without restrictions in the first trimester. The initiative is also seen as a political challenge to President Vazquez, on the fourth of his five year term from his own ruling coalition since his position on the matter has always been very clear.