ARGENTINIAN pro-choice activists took to social media today in a series of events to mark 15 years of campaigning, as MPs are set to debate a Bill to legalise abortions.

Groups held conferences, online demonstrations and artistic performances to make the campaign visible again, after the Covid-19 pandemic stalled progress just as Argentina was poised to become the first major country in the region to permit terminations.

Government officials said that a debate on the legislation was still planned and that they expected it to become law sometime this year, though they did not say when.

Abortion is illegal in Argentina except in cases of rape or if the mother’s life is in danger. There have been huge protests across Latin America demanding the right to terminations.

In many countries in the region, mothers have been prosecuted for having miscarriages. In El Salvador, Evelyn Hernandez was jailed for 30 years after being raped, with prosecutors claiming that her miscarriage had been an illegal termination. She was released pending a retrial following a public outcry.

The National Campaign for the Right to Legal, Safe and Free Abortion said: “It’s been 15 years of campaigning in the streets and in Congress, building networks in different territories, for a Bill that addresses the realities and rights of people who are criminalised and put their lives and health at risk when they decide to have an abortion.”