3 March 2021
Abortion will finally be decriminalised in South Australia.
The Termination of Pregnancy Bill 2020 was passed by the South Australian Upper House for the second time on Tuesday afternoon, officially becoming law.
The Bill removes abortion from the criminal code and allows terminations after 22 weeks and six days’ gestation.
“Abortion will no longer be a criminal offence in South Australia. This is a massive win for reproductive rights, and the rights of all people to choose what happens to their own body. Access to a safe, legal abortion is a critical healthcare right,’’ Human Rights Law Centre Associate Legal Director Monique Hurley said.
“We are grateful to the countless people who have been fighting for this long overdue reform, which will see abortion finally treated as the health care matter it is.’’
The Upper House was required to vote on the Bill a second time after several amendments were forced through in the Lower House. Amendments included tighter provisions for late-term abortions and a ban on terminations done for gender selection reasons.
“This reform has been a long time coming and while it is disappointing that a handful of politicians held people’s health to ransom by forcing through some harmful and unnecessary amendments in the Lower House, the decriminalisation of abortion in South Australia is a historic moment that we should all be proud of,” Ms Hurley said.
“Medical professionals can now bring compassion to the delivery of abortion care without the threat of the law,” SA Abortion Action Coalition co-convener Barbara Baird told The Advertiser.
“This is especially significant for patients in rural and remote South Australia who have long waited for the removal of legal barriers to accessing the same abortion care as those living in Adelaide.”