Decriminalization of abortion in rape cases fails to pass Ecuadoran Parliament
A demonstrator speaks to the police after the Ecuadoran Parliament’s decision to not decriminalize abortion for victims of rape, cases of incest, stupor or unconsented insemination, in a street in Quito, Ecuador.
A decriminalisation proposal fell five votes short of the 70 required for its approval, with 59 assembly members voting against and six refraining.
In Ecuador, a woman who causes an abortion or allows an abortion to be performed on her faces six months to two years in prison, according to a law in place since 2014.
Demonstrators who had been in favor of the plan gathered outside the National Assembly after the vote, some trying to tear down metal fences around the building.
Police dispersed the crowd with pepper spray.
Photo: EPA-EFE/JOSE JACOME
