CV NEWS FEED // A pro-life institute dedicated to science and statistics regarding life issues recently submitted an amicus brief to the Constitutional Court of Ecuador in light of recent controversy surrounding the future of abortion in the country.
Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI) scholar Mary E. Harned, J.D., submitted an amicus briefing to the Court on February 19, “written in support of three provisions of Ecuador’s Organic Law Regulating the Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy (LORIVE).”
The three provisions being challenged in the Court require mothers to obtain ultrasounds prior to an abortion decision, impose a 12-week gestational age limit on abortion, and prohibit “commodification” of post-abortion fetal remains.
The briefing states that it is necessary “to protect the health of a woman considering abortion,” to obtain an ultrasound:
It is critical that an accurate assessment of gestation and pregnancy location (i.e., that the unborn child is in the uterus) is made before the abortion, and an ultrasound is the best means for making that determination.The dangers to women from surgical abortion are summarized by the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG).
With respect to the 12-week threshold, the briefing posits that “it is a scientific fact that a unique human being forms at conception,” and that by week twelve, an unborn baby’s heart “has beat over 10 million times” and “is extremely active with complex behaviors that include thumb-sucking, yawning, swallowing, stretching, making little fists, and scratching her head.”
“Given the advanced development of an unborn child at 12 weeks and common practice worldwide of setting gestational limits on abortion and limiting abortion to specified circumstances,” the briefing stated, “the LORIVE’s 12-week gestational limitation and restriction to cases of rape are medically and legally justified.”
CLI also argued against allowing fetal remains to be utilized in organ transfers or other related causes, saying “it is critical to prevent the commodification of unborn babies’ bodies which can lead to pressure to abort.”
“For the reasons discussed above, we support the LORIVE, and respectfully encourage this Court to uphold it as the law in Ecuador. We also request that our arguments be heard at the public hearing for which we will appoint a representative,” CLI concluded.