Colombia decriminalizes abortion for up to 24 weeks

Abortion rights proponents celebrate in Colombia
(Image credit: Raul Arboleda/AFP/Getty Images)

Colombia's Constitutional Court on Monday decriminalized abortion for up to 24 weeks, making Colombia the latest in a string of Latin American countries to increase access to abortion. Argentina's Congress legalized all abortions up to 14 weeks in late 2020 and Mexico's Supreme Court decriminalized the procedure last September. In Colombia, abortions were only legal in cases of rape, if the mother's life or health was in danger, or if the fetus was malformed.

The court's 5-4 ruling, following one justice recusing himself and a court-appointed tiebreaker being added to the case, also urged Colombia's Congress to come up with rules to implement the ruling.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.