Mexico decriminalises abortion nationwide
The ruling on Wednesday means no punishment can apply for accessing abortion services in Mexico
Mexico's Supreme Court has decriminalised abortion nationwide.
The decision comes almost two years after the court unanimously ruled that penalising abortion is unconstitutional, in what was hailed a "watershed moment" for all women.
That ruling in September 2021 only covered the northern state of Coahuila, where officials declared any woman imprisoned for terminating a pregnancy should be released "immediately".
From now, it will apply across the predominantly Roman Catholic country.
Campaigners at the Information Group on Reproductive Choice (GIRE) brought a case challenging the federal penal code.
The Supreme Court sided with GIRE, declaring the section of national law that made abortion illegal could no longer take effect.
GIRE said in a statement: "No woman or pregnant person, nor any health worker, will be able to be punished for abortion."
Deputy director Isabel Fulda said: "We wouldn't have this ruling if we didn't have the Coahuila one two years ago.
"I would say that this one today has more reach, definitely in terms of access to abortion," she added.
In a statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, the court said it found the abortion section of the federal penal code unconstitutional and that it violated the rights of people who can have children.
Since the 2021 ruling, just 12 of Mexico's 32 states have taken steps to decriminalise abortion.
The central state of Aguascalientes was the most recent to do so last month, when the Supreme Court sided with GIRE in a similar challenge to the penal code.
Mexico's National Institute for Women described the new Supreme Court decision on Wednesday as a "big step" for gender equality, posting on X: "Today is a day for victory and justice for Mexican women!"
Former Supreme Court justice Senator Olga Sanchez Cordero said the ruling represented an advance towards "a more just society in which the rights of all are respected".
But conservative opponents have vowed to continue fighting against expanded abortion access.
