Mexico's highest court has ruled to decriminalise abortion nationwide after asserting that previous rules breached human rights
ADVERTISEMENTMexico’s Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that state laws prohibiting abortion are unconstitutional and violate women’s rights.
The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) ruled Wednesday to decriminalise abortion at the federal level in Mexico.
Posting on 'X' (formerly Twitter) the court "resolved that the legal system that criminalises abortion in the Federal Criminal Code is unconstitutional, as it violates the human rights of women and people with the capacity to gestate."
The landmark decision applies nationwide and is part of a growing trend of legalising abortion in Latin America. It should see termination services becoming more readily available in Mexico.
Voluntary abortion has been decriminalised in at least 11 of Mexico's 32 states.
The Mexico City government was the first Latin American jurisdiction to authorise it in 2007. Most allow the service to be provided to individuals before they reach 12 weeks of pregnancy.
The move is a win for pro-choice activists in a Catholic-dominated country.
Over 80 per cent of Mexico's 130 million people are Catholic, making the magistrates' decision historic as religious and conservative groups have condemned the ruling citing beliefs in the rights of unborn foetuses.