CHOICES Network Thailand, along with 55 other civil society organizations and 559 petitioners, petitioned the Department of Health, Ministry of Public Health to issue immediate measures to ensure women have access to safe abortion services during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Although medical abortion services are available under the law and the Department of Health has supported the operation of a volunteer network of Referral System for Safe Abortion (RSA) since 2015, women in Thailand still face barriers in accessing safe abortion services across the country.
This is mainly due to the stigma surrounding abortion, resistance from some healthcare providers, and limitations in some provinces in the country.
That barrier is exacerbated by the coronavirus outbreak, where women are finding it even harder to access safe abortion services, consultations, and medicine — all that are necessary for their well-being.
This is due to the current restrictive measures where women are unable to travel outside of the areas in which they live, the petition said.
Government hospitals and service providers have also stopped providing services to cater to the demands of the current situation.
The petition calls for the government to immediately start providing telemedicine, which includes online counseling and sending abortion medicine by mail.
The medicine is very safe and has a 98% efficiency rate in terminating the pregnancy to those who are pregnant under 12 weeks.
“Any woman can take the medicine in the confines of their own homes; the medicine is not dangerous in any way.” Nattapat Jatupornpimol of Tamtang Groups, one of the organizations, told Thai Enquirer.
“Once the 12 weeks have passed, and since no one knows how long this pandemic will last, these women who want abortions could face serious complications both in the short and long run, and it could be fatal.”
Nattapat noted the likelihood of women to resort to clandestine abortion, with some ordering abortion medicine online from unreliable sources.
Change of mindset
“We want society to reconsider this notion of abortion.” said Nattapat, “These women are just trying to take care of their health. Taking care of your health and well-being is not a sin.”
Safe abortion services should exist in all parts of society because everyone has the right to demand their safety and well-being.
“The question to those opposing abortion these women have is — will you help me raise my child?”