Mexico City
Mexico City’s legislative assembly last week passed a bill legalizing abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, a first in Mexico. Women’s health advocates say the law, which applies only within Mexico City limits, could serve as a template for the rest of the country, whose population of 107 million is overwhelmingly Roman Catholic. Government officials say about 200,000 illegal abortions are performed in Mexico every year, and complications from illegal abortions are the third leading cause of death for pregnant women in the capital city. The law bars doctors from refusing to perform abortions on moral grounds. But Roman Catholic Cardinal Norberto Rivera of Mexico City warned Catholic medical personnel that they faced excommunication if they took part in the procedure.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Gandhi arrests: Narendra Modi's 'vendetta' against India's oppositionThe Explainer Another episode threatens to spark uproar in the Indian PM's long-running battle against the country's first family
-
How the woke right gained power in the USUnder the radar The term has grown in prominence since Donald Trump returned to the White House
-
Codeword: April 24, 2025The Week's daily codeword puzzle
